Dundee United

1 January 1970

Dundee United slideshow

Liam Miller appropriately commemorated by James Forrest in Celtic win

Liam Miller’s untimely death was felt with particular poignancy on Saturday at Celtic Park, where he began his career as a youth player in 1997, before making his debut against Dundee United three years later in Kenny Dalglish’s last game in charge. Martin O’Neill, the next Celtic manager, was so impressed by the youngster’s skills that he offered Miller a four-year contract and proposed to refashion the team around him. Miller declined, moving to Old Trafford when his contract expired in July 2004 but, against expectations, he could not secure a first team place under Alex Ferguson and his career after Manchester United became peripatetic and he moved on to Sunderland, Queen’s Park Rangers and Hibernian before spells in Australia and the USA, where he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer in November. Miller’s passing on Friday was commemorated by an immaculately observed minute’s silence before kick-off at Celtic’s home tie with Partick Thistle in the fifth round of the William Hill Scottish Cup. “You saw from the response that Liam was held in affection here and that reflected the fact that he came through the ranks,” said Tom Boyd, the former Celtic captain, who played alongside Miller. “It took him a little while to get into the team because the midfield was full of quality international players at the time, but when he did step up he made a massive impact. We always have a certain respect at Celtic for players who come up from youth level and it seems appropriate that our goals on Saturday were all scored by James Forrest, who progressed through the same route.” Forrest, in fact, joined Celtic’s academy while Miller was still with the club and, if his initial progress was less spectacular than that of the Republic of Ireland international, the winger is now enjoying his most productive season with his best ever goals total – now at 16 and likely to rise by several more, if current form is a reliable guide. His plunder was aided by woeful defending by Partick, who were behind within two minutes when Forrest converted the rebound from a Moussa Dembele shot which came off Danny Devine. Celtic's players join together before the game Credit: PA Forrest was granted the freedom of the entire Thistle half for a run and shot in the 10th minute and completed his first ever hat-trick eight minutes after the break when he finished a left-wing combination which linked Kieran Tierney and Scott Sinclair. The Jags, though had been given hope when Jozo Simunovic carelessly handed possession to Kris Doolan for a delightful chip over Dorus de Vries in the Celtic goal. Doolan, too, was etching himself into the record books. The goal crowned his 350th appearance for Thistle before he made way on the hour for Conor Sammon. The replacement kept the issue in doubt by netting Thistle’s second in the 83rd minute and the visitors almost forced a draw in injury time, when Tierney and De Vries between them just managed to thwart Ryan Edwards on the goal line. “It was a great cross from Chris Erskine and I looked up and thought I was going to score,” said Edwards. “Kieran Tierney blocked it – he did ever so well because I was in front of him. “It was one of those where you see the ball hit the net before you connect. It was coming right to my foot and Tierney did ever so well and then the keeper just picked it up. I’m disappointed we didn’t get a replay.” If Thistle were disappointed at being caught cold by Forrest’s first two goals – especially since they had discussed the need for a disciplined start – they can take consolation for the fight against relegation from their spirited finish, a notable contrast with early season form that saw them damaged repeatedly by late goals. Forrest (left) celebrates after completing his hat-trick Credit: PA Asked if increased stamina now played a part, Edwards said: “Maybe – the fitness thing could be mentality and with players coming back from injury there is greater competition for places. It’s a positive environment to be in.” The possibility of yet another Thistle revival in the second half of the season has been revived by recent form. “I hope so,” Edwards said. “This is my third season and it’s happening again. “We don’t seem to start great but then it comes January and we seem to turn it around. I don’t know why that is. We don’t want to be in that position and it’s not planned. We’ve had good league results and we want to keep progressing. We have three massive games coming up starting next week against Dundee.” Celtic, of course, are engaged on a greatly contrasting itinerary, with the defence of their domestic treble and the possibility of progress in the Europa League. Zenit, though, are equipped with much more potent firepower than Partick, a strength that will require concomitant concentration by the Hoops defenders, if they are to keep the Russian side at bay. It was a long game, hectic too,” said Kris Ajer, Celtic’s Norwegian central defender. “Thistle pressed us well throughout the whole game. Even when we went up 2-0 they did really well to come back and never gave us a second on the ball.” That, it need hardly be overstated, is a factor that cannot escape Zenit’s attention ahead of what promises to be another fascinating, but tense, European evening at Parkead.

Liam Miller appropriately commemorated by James Forrest in Celtic win

Liam Miller’s untimely death was felt with particular poignancy on Saturday at Celtic Park, where he began his career as a youth player in 1997, before making his debut against Dundee United three years later in Kenny Dalglish’s last game in charge. Martin O’Neill, the next Celtic manager, was so impressed by the youngster’s skills that he offered Miller a four-year contract and proposed to refashion the team around him. Miller declined, moving to Old Trafford when his contract expired in July 2004 but, against expectations, he could not secure a first team place under Alex Ferguson and his career after Manchester United became peripatetic and he moved on to Sunderland, Queen’s Park Rangers and Hibernian before spells in Australia and the USA, where he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer in November. Miller’s passing on Friday was commemorated by an immaculately observed minute’s silence before kick-off at Celtic’s home tie with Partick Thistle in the fifth round of the William Hill Scottish Cup. “You saw from the response that Liam was held in affection here and that reflected the fact that he came through the ranks,” said Tom Boyd, the former Celtic captain, who played alongside Miller. “It took him a little while to get into the team because the midfield was full of quality international players at the time, but when he did step up he made a massive impact. We always have a certain respect at Celtic for players who come up from youth level and it seems appropriate that our goals on Saturday were all scored by James Forrest, who progressed through the same route.” Forrest, in fact, joined Celtic’s academy while Miller was still with the club and, if his initial progress was less spectacular than that of the Republic of Ireland international, the winger is now enjoying his most productive season with his best ever goals total – now at 16 and likely to rise by several more, if current form is a reliable guide. His plunder was aided by woeful defending by Partick, who were behind within two minutes when Forrest converted the rebound from a Moussa Dembele shot which came off Danny Devine. Celtic's players join together before the game Credit: PA Forrest was granted the freedom of the entire Thistle half for a run and shot in the 10th minute and completed his first ever hat-trick eight minutes after the break when he finished a left-wing combination which linked Kieran Tierney and Scott Sinclair. The Jags, though had been given hope when Jozo Simunovic carelessly handed possession to Kris Doolan for a delightful chip over Dorus de Vries in the Celtic goal. Doolan, too, was etching himself into the record books. The goal crowned his 350th appearance for Thistle before he made way on the hour for Conor Sammon. The replacement kept the issue in doubt by netting Thistle’s second in the 83rd minute and the visitors almost forced a draw in injury time, when Tierney and De Vries between them just managed to thwart Ryan Edwards on the goal line. “It was a great cross from Chris Erskine and I looked up and thought I was going to score,” said Edwards. “Kieran Tierney blocked it – he did ever so well because I was in front of him. “It was one of those where you see the ball hit the net before you connect. It was coming right to my foot and Tierney did ever so well and then the keeper just picked it up. I’m disappointed we didn’t get a replay.” If Thistle were disappointed at being caught cold by Forrest’s first two goals – especially since they had discussed the need for a disciplined start – they can take consolation for the fight against relegation from their spirited finish, a notable contrast with early season form that saw them damaged repeatedly by late goals. Forrest (left) celebrates after completing his hat-trick Credit: PA Asked if increased stamina now played a part, Edwards said: “Maybe – the fitness thing could be mentality and with players coming back from injury there is greater competition for places. It’s a positive environment to be in.” The possibility of yet another Thistle revival in the second half of the season has been revived by recent form. “I hope so,” Edwards said. “This is my third season and it’s happening again. “We don’t seem to start great but then it comes January and we seem to turn it around. I don’t know why that is. We don’t want to be in that position and it’s not planned. We’ve had good league results and we want to keep progressing. We have three massive games coming up starting next week against Dundee.” Celtic, of course, are engaged on a greatly contrasting itinerary, with the defence of their domestic treble and the possibility of progress in the Europa League. Zenit, though, are equipped with much more potent firepower than Partick, a strength that will require concomitant concentration by the Hoops defenders, if they are to keep the Russian side at bay. It was a long game, hectic too,” said Kris Ajer, Celtic’s Norwegian central defender. “Thistle pressed us well throughout the whole game. Even when we went up 2-0 they did really well to come back and never gave us a second on the ball.” That, it need hardly be overstated, is a factor that cannot escape Zenit’s attention ahead of what promises to be another fascinating, but tense, European evening at Parkead.

Liam Miller appropriately commemorated by James Forrest in Celtic win

Liam Miller’s untimely death was felt with particular poignancy on Saturday at Celtic Park, where he began his career as a youth player in 1997, before making his debut against Dundee United three years later in Kenny Dalglish’s last game in charge. Martin O’Neill, the next Celtic manager, was so impressed by the youngster’s skills that he offered Miller a four-year contract and proposed to refashion the team around him. Miller declined, moving to Old Trafford when his contract expired in July 2004 but, against expectations, he could not secure a first team place under Alex Ferguson and his career after Manchester United became peripatetic and he moved on to Sunderland, Queen’s Park Rangers and Hibernian before spells in Australia and the USA, where he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer in November. Miller’s passing on Friday was commemorated by an immaculately observed minute’s silence before kick-off at Celtic’s home tie with Partick Thistle in the fifth round of the William Hill Scottish Cup. “You saw from the response that Liam was held in affection here and that reflected the fact that he came through the ranks,” said Tom Boyd, the former Celtic captain, who played alongside Miller. “It took him a little while to get into the team because the midfield was full of quality international players at the time, but when he did step up he made a massive impact. We always have a certain respect at Celtic for players who come up from youth level and it seems appropriate that our goals on Saturday were all scored by James Forrest, who progressed through the same route.” Forrest, in fact, joined Celtic’s academy while Miller was still with the club and, if his initial progress was less spectacular than that of the Republic of Ireland international, the winger is now enjoying his most productive season with his best ever goals total – now at 16 and likely to rise by several more, if current form is a reliable guide. His plunder was aided by woeful defending by Partick, who were behind within two minutes when Forrest converted the rebound from a Moussa Dembele shot which came off Danny Devine. Celtic's players join together before the game Credit: PA Forrest was granted the freedom of the entire Thistle half for a run and shot in the 10th minute and completed his first ever hat-trick eight minutes after the break when he finished a left-wing combination which linked Kieran Tierney and Scott Sinclair. The Jags, though had been given hope when Jozo Simunovic carelessly handed possession to Kris Doolan for a delightful chip over Dorus de Vries in the Celtic goal. Doolan, too, was etching himself into the record books. The goal crowned his 350th appearance for Thistle before he made way on the hour for Conor Sammon. The replacement kept the issue in doubt by netting Thistle’s second in the 83rd minute and the visitors almost forced a draw in injury time, when Tierney and De Vries between them just managed to thwart Ryan Edwards on the goal line. “It was a great cross from Chris Erskine and I looked up and thought I was going to score,” said Edwards. “Kieran Tierney blocked it – he did ever so well because I was in front of him. “It was one of those where you see the ball hit the net before you connect. It was coming right to my foot and Tierney did ever so well and then the keeper just picked it up. I’m disappointed we didn’t get a replay.” If Thistle were disappointed at being caught cold by Forrest’s first two goals – especially since they had discussed the need for a disciplined start – they can take consolation for the fight against relegation from their spirited finish, a notable contrast with early season form that saw them damaged repeatedly by late goals. Forrest (left) celebrates after completing his hat-trick Credit: PA Asked if increased stamina now played a part, Edwards said: “Maybe – the fitness thing could be mentality and with players coming back from injury there is greater competition for places. It’s a positive environment to be in.” The possibility of yet another Thistle revival in the second half of the season has been revived by recent form. “I hope so,” Edwards said. “This is my third season and it’s happening again. “We don’t seem to start great but then it comes January and we seem to turn it around. I don’t know why that is. We don’t want to be in that position and it’s not planned. We’ve had good league results and we want to keep progressing. We have three massive games coming up starting next week against Dundee.” Celtic, of course, are engaged on a greatly contrasting itinerary, with the defence of their domestic treble and the possibility of progress in the Europa League. Zenit, though, are equipped with much more potent firepower than Partick, a strength that will require concomitant concentration by the Hoops defenders, if they are to keep the Russian side at bay. It was a long game, hectic too,” said Kris Ajer, Celtic’s Norwegian central defender. “Thistle pressed us well throughout the whole game. Even when we went up 2-0 they did really well to come back and never gave us a second on the ball.” That, it need hardly be overstated, is a factor that cannot escape Zenit’s attention ahead of what promises to be another fascinating, but tense, European evening at Parkead.

As Celtic seek their first European home win outside qualifying matches under Brendan Rodgers, their manager warned that Zenit St Petersburg are a stronger team than Anderlecht, who were edged out by his men for a place in the Europa League. The tournament sees Zenit – managed by Roberto Mancini who was formerly in charge of Manchester City – come to the east end of Glasgow on Thursday. Rodgers has guided Celtic to successive Champions League group stage appearances and also into the knockout stage of this season’s Europa League, but they have been unable to post a home win in six attempts against Barcelona, Borussia Moenchengladbach, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Anderlecht. Their best group stage performance was the 3-0 victory over Anderlecht in Brussels, but Rodgers’ players lost the subsequent encounter at Parkhead to a Jozo Simunovic own goal. Against Zenit, Rodgers would have preferred to play the first leg in Russia. “Everyone likes the second leg at home. You know what you are playing for then,” said Rodgers. “It’s not the worst to have the first leg at home. You can try to get some sort of advantage. If you can keep a clean sheet, it gives you a real motivation going away. Brendan Rodgers is excited by the challenge his Celtic team will face in the Europa Cup Credit: Getty Images “I have looked at Zenit, and they play slightly differently from Manchester City. At Manchester City, Roberto had very much a defensive block with quality players. “It was 4-2-3-1 or 3-5-2 at times. This team is very clearly 4-3-3. They press the game. It is certainly a change from how his Man City team played. “Branislav Ivanovic is there, who I worked with at Chelsea. He has gone back out there and is a real linchpin for the team. He has still got good legs and strength and power and experience. “He is playing as a centre-half. That was his actual position when they brought him in to Chelsea. He ended up playing a lot at right-back and doing really well there. It is a really difficult game for us. They are a very good side.” In other circumstances, Rodgers’ CV would have included a spell as Mancini’s No 2. “Roberto had his first season at Manchester City, and I was asked to come and speak to them about maybe going in there to assist and work,” he said. “I flew out to Italy to meet him at the end of the season. We had a chat out there, then I came back, and it was a case of the Swansea position coming up, and I think Roberto was probably wanting his own man in as well. It worked out that I went to Swansea and Roberto had David Platt, whom he knew from Sampdoria.” Celtic extended the defence of their treble of domestic honours with a home victory over Partick Thistle in the fifth round of the William Hill Scottish Cup yesterday. In contrast to their performance in the 1-0 defeat by Kilmarnock at Rugby Park the previous weekend, they got off to a racing start with a James Forrest double, the second of which saw the winger run from the halfway line for a right-foot finish beyond goalkeeper Tomas Cerny. Kyle Lafferty celebrated scoring a brace for Hearts 3-0 win over St Johnstone Credit: PA The Jags looked beaten but were revived when Simunovic played an attempted a pass back to Dorus de Vries straight into the path of Kris Doolan, who marked his 350th appearance for Thistle with a first-time left-foot chip over De Vries. When Forrest netted his hat-trick after the break, Celtic looked safe, but Connor Sammon revived Thistle’s hopes with a late close-range strike, and it took a tackle by Kieran Tierney and a clutch on the line by De Vries to prevent Ryan Edwards stealing a draw in injury time. Also into the quarter-finals are Hearts, whose 3-0 home win over St Johnstone included a Kyle Lafferty brace, and Kilmarnock, who ended Brora Rangers’ progress with a 4-0 win over at Rugby Park. The other Highland League team, Cove Rangers, were beaten 3-1 at home by Falkirk, while in the all-Premiership collision at Dens Park, Dundee lost 2-0 to Motherwell. The remaining tie of the day was at Cappielow, where Morton prevailed against their trans-Clyde rivals, Dumbarton, with goals from Frank Ross, Jack Iredale and Bob McHugh. Today’s games see Ayr United at home to Rangers and Aberdeen against Dundee United at Pittodrie, where the quarter-final draw will be made.

As Celtic seek their first European home win outside qualifying matches under Brendan Rodgers, their manager warned that Zenit St Petersburg are a stronger team than Anderlecht, who were edged out by his men for a place in the Europa League. The tournament sees Zenit – managed by Roberto Mancini who was formerly in charge of Manchester City – come to the east end of Glasgow on Thursday. Rodgers has guided Celtic to successive Champions League group stage appearances and also into the knockout stage of this season’s Europa League, but they have been unable to post a home win in six attempts against Barcelona, Borussia Moenchengladbach, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Anderlecht. Their best group stage performance was the 3-0 victory over Anderlecht in Brussels, but Rodgers’ players lost the subsequent encounter at Parkhead to a Jozo Simunovic own goal. Against Zenit, Rodgers would have preferred to play the first leg in Russia. “Everyone likes the second leg at home. You know what you are playing for then,” said Rodgers. “It’s not the worst to have the first leg at home. You can try to get some sort of advantage. If you can keep a clean sheet, it gives you a real motivation going away. Brendan Rodgers is excited by the challenge his Celtic team will face in the Europa Cup Credit: Getty Images “I have looked at Zenit, and they play slightly differently from Manchester City. At Manchester City, Roberto had very much a defensive block with quality players. “It was 4-2-3-1 or 3-5-2 at times. This team is very clearly 4-3-3. They press the game. It is certainly a change from how his Man City team played. “Branislav Ivanovic is there, who I worked with at Chelsea. He has gone back out there and is a real linchpin for the team. He has still got good legs and strength and power and experience. “He is playing as a centre-half. That was his actual position when they brought him in to Chelsea. He ended up playing a lot at right-back and doing really well there. It is a really difficult game for us. They are a very good side.” In other circumstances, Rodgers’ CV would have included a spell as Mancini’s No 2. “Roberto had his first season at Manchester City, and I was asked to come and speak to them about maybe going in there to assist and work,” he said. “I flew out to Italy to meet him at the end of the season. We had a chat out there, then I came back, and it was a case of the Swansea position coming up, and I think Roberto was probably wanting his own man in as well. It worked out that I went to Swansea and Roberto had David Platt, whom he knew from Sampdoria.” Celtic extended the defence of their treble of domestic honours with a home victory over Partick Thistle in the fifth round of the William Hill Scottish Cup yesterday. In contrast to their performance in the 1-0 defeat by Kilmarnock at Rugby Park the previous weekend, they got off to a racing start with a James Forrest double, the second of which saw the winger run from the halfway line for a right-foot finish beyond goalkeeper Tomas Cerny. Kyle Lafferty celebrated scoring a brace for Hearts 3-0 win over St Johnstone Credit: PA The Jags looked beaten but were revived when Simunovic played an attempted a pass back to Dorus de Vries straight into the path of Kris Doolan, who marked his 350th appearance for Thistle with a first-time left-foot chip over De Vries. When Forrest netted his hat-trick after the break, Celtic looked safe, but Connor Sammon revived Thistle’s hopes with a late close-range strike, and it took a tackle by Kieran Tierney and a clutch on the line by De Vries to prevent Ryan Edwards stealing a draw in injury time. Also into the quarter-finals are Hearts, whose 3-0 home win over St Johnstone included a Kyle Lafferty brace, and Kilmarnock, who ended Brora Rangers’ progress with a 4-0 win over at Rugby Park. The other Highland League team, Cove Rangers, were beaten 3-1 at home by Falkirk, while in the all-Premiership collision at Dens Park, Dundee lost 2-0 to Motherwell. The remaining tie of the day was at Cappielow, where Morton prevailed against their trans-Clyde rivals, Dumbarton, with goals from Frank Ross, Jack Iredale and Bob McHugh. Today’s games see Ayr United at home to Rangers and Aberdeen against Dundee United at Pittodrie, where the quarter-final draw will be made.

As Celtic seek their first European home win outside qualifying matches under Brendan Rodgers, their manager warned that Zenit St Petersburg are a stronger team than Anderlecht, who were edged out by his men for a place in the Europa League. The tournament sees Zenit – managed by Roberto Mancini who was formerly in charge of Manchester City – come to the east end of Glasgow on Thursday. Rodgers has guided Celtic to successive Champions League group stage appearances and also into the knockout stage of this season’s Europa League, but they have been unable to post a home win in six attempts against Barcelona, Borussia Moenchengladbach, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Anderlecht. Their best group stage performance was the 3-0 victory over Anderlecht in Brussels, but Rodgers’ players lost the subsequent encounter at Parkhead to a Jozo Simunovic own goal. Against Zenit, Rodgers would have preferred to play the first leg in Russia. “Everyone likes the second leg at home. You know what you are playing for then,” said Rodgers. “It’s not the worst to have the first leg at home. You can try to get some sort of advantage. If you can keep a clean sheet, it gives you a real motivation going away. Brendan Rodgers is excited by the challenge his Celtic team will face in the Europa Cup Credit: Getty Images “I have looked at Zenit, and they play slightly differently from Manchester City. At Manchester City, Roberto had very much a defensive block with quality players. “It was 4-2-3-1 or 3-5-2 at times. This team is very clearly 4-3-3. They press the game. It is certainly a change from how his Man City team played. “Branislav Ivanovic is there, who I worked with at Chelsea. He has gone back out there and is a real linchpin for the team. He has still got good legs and strength and power and experience. “He is playing as a centre-half. That was his actual position when they brought him in to Chelsea. He ended up playing a lot at right-back and doing really well there. It is a really difficult game for us. They are a very good side.” In other circumstances, Rodgers’ CV would have included a spell as Mancini’s No 2. “Roberto had his first season at Manchester City, and I was asked to come and speak to them about maybe going in there to assist and work,” he said. “I flew out to Italy to meet him at the end of the season. We had a chat out there, then I came back, and it was a case of the Swansea position coming up, and I think Roberto was probably wanting his own man in as well. It worked out that I went to Swansea and Roberto had David Platt, whom he knew from Sampdoria.” Celtic extended the defence of their treble of domestic honours with a home victory over Partick Thistle in the fifth round of the William Hill Scottish Cup yesterday. In contrast to their performance in the 1-0 defeat by Kilmarnock at Rugby Park the previous weekend, they got off to a racing start with a James Forrest double, the second of which saw the winger run from the halfway line for a right-foot finish beyond goalkeeper Tomas Cerny. Kyle Lafferty celebrated scoring a brace for Hearts 3-0 win over St Johnstone Credit: PA The Jags looked beaten but were revived when Simunovic played an attempted a pass back to Dorus de Vries straight into the path of Kris Doolan, who marked his 350th appearance for Thistle with a first-time left-foot chip over De Vries. When Forrest netted his hat-trick after the break, Celtic looked safe, but Connor Sammon revived Thistle’s hopes with a late close-range strike, and it took a tackle by Kieran Tierney and a clutch on the line by De Vries to prevent Ryan Edwards stealing a draw in injury time. Also into the quarter-finals are Hearts, whose 3-0 home win over St Johnstone included a Kyle Lafferty brace, and Kilmarnock, who ended Brora Rangers’ progress with a 4-0 win over at Rugby Park. The other Highland League team, Cove Rangers, were beaten 3-1 at home by Falkirk, while in the all-Premiership collision at Dens Park, Dundee lost 2-0 to Motherwell. The remaining tie of the day was at Cappielow, where Morton prevailed against their trans-Clyde rivals, Dumbarton, with goals from Frank Ross, Jack Iredale and Bob McHugh. Today’s games see Ayr United at home to Rangers and Aberdeen against Dundee United at Pittodrie, where the quarter-final draw will be made.

Stewart Regan's SFA reign ends after failure to land Michael O'Neill for Scotland

Was there ever such a tale of woe, as that of the SFA and its CEO? Apologies to William Shakespeare for such borrowing, but even the Bard of Avon would have had difficulty condensing the catalogue of incident that awaited Stewart Regan – who quit his post yesterday – when he left Yorkshire Cricket Club to take charge of Scottish football’s governing body on July 28, 2010. Within four months, Regan had been forced to sack his head of referee development, Hugh Dallas – along with another four employees – because of a furore generated by their circulation of a satirical email linking the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the child abuse scandal within the Roman Catholic church. The episode attracted condemnation by that unlikely participant in football controversy, the arch-atheist, Richard Dawkins. That eruption overlapped with another refereeing row when Dougie McDonald awarded Celtic a penalty kick in a league match against Dundee United at Tannadice, then reversed his decision, later claiming to have done so on the advice of his linesman, who promptly denounced this version of the incident as a lie. The contribution of inflammatory remarks by John Reid, the Celtic chairman and former Home Secretary, prompted Scotland’s only referees’ strike, with officials being imported from Luxembourg, Malta and Israel to allow fixtures to proceed. Scarcely had this episode died down than an altercation between Celtic manager, Neil Lennon, and his Rangers counterpart, Ally McCoist – during an Old Firm derby at Parkhead in March 2011 – triggered the ire of politicians and contributed to the Offensive Behaviour at Football Act, subsequently passed by the Scottish Parliament in January 2012. Neil Lennon and Ally McCoist clash in 2011 Credit: Reuters That particular piece of legislation is in the process of being scrapped, although it has support from organisations formed to fight sectarianism and racism. If Regan hoped that he might draw breath during the summer of 2012, he could not have been further off the mark. The ramshackle regime of Craig Whyte – who had bought Rangers for £1 from Sir David Murray the previous year – collapsed into liquidation, prompting the biggest crisis ever to engulf the Scottish game, as several contending parties argued about how and where the Ibrox club should be permitted to proceed, if at all. When the Scottish Premier League voted to refuse Rangers permission to rejoin their organisation, Regan spoke out in apocalyptic tones. “Without Rangers there is social unrest – there is a big problem for Scottish society,” he said. “I think if you look at the huge fan base Rangers have in this country, to contemplate a situation where those fans don’t have a team to support, where those fans are effectively left without a game to follow – I just think that could lead to all sorts of issues and all sorts of problems for the game. “Tribalism in football is really important, a part of the game. You can’t contemplate a situation without that and, if Rangers weren’t to exist, I think that could have real dire consequences.” Regan was promptly derided by several Scottish Football League chairmen who alleged that he had effectively threatened them to agree to admit Rangers to their First Division. In the event, Rangers began in the SFL’s third division in 2012-13. Having presided over chaotic situations, not of his making, in respect of referees and clubs, Regan was also obliged to confront Scotland’s long exile from the later stages of major tournaments. When he first arrived at Hampden Park, Regan inherited a national manager in the form of Craig Levein and, for the qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup, the SFA successfully secured Scotland’s first two games at home to Serbia and Macedonia in September 2012. Regan (left) with Gordon Strachan Credit: AFP Both matches, however, ended in draws and when the Scots then lost away to Wales and Belgium the campaign was effectively over. Regan identified Gordon Strachan as the man to take Scotland to Euro 2016 but, after a promising start, Scotland stumbled to a 1-0 defeat by Georgia in Tbilisi and finished fourth in their section behind Germany, Poland and the Republic of Ireland. Strachan was allowed to remain for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers and, but for Harry Kane’s injury time equaliser for England at Hampden Park last June, the Scots would probably have made the play-offs and might now be contemplating their first tournament finals since 1998. Instead, yet another failure prompted Regan to pursue Michael O’Neill as the best qualified candidate to succeed Strachan, but the passage of three months before the Northern Ireland manager’s refusal allowed the chief executive’s critics to gather momentum. He was further undermined by the acceptance of two post-season friendlies in Peru and Mexico, designed to earn the SFA much-needed revenue, but which were denounced by the Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers, whose players make up half the current Scotland team. Some will miss Regan. This correspondent found the departing CEO to be consistently helpful, but it is a truism about football administrators that they cannot satisfy all of their constituents all of the time. Sooner or later the critical mass makes itself heard, as in this case. So, if anybody is inclined to take over a national association without a national team manager, whose players have not tasted qualification success for 20 years, whose main sponsorship deal comes to an end this summer and who do not know if they will play future games at Hampden Park, the home of Scottish football or at Murrayfield, the home of Scottish rugby – then this is the job for you. And, by way of breaking news – Telegraph Sport can confirm that the SFA will not wait for the appointment of a chief executive before renewing their search for a team manager. The probability is that Scotland’s players will have a new boss before the governors of Scottish football appoint their man.

Stewart Regan's SFA reign ends after failure to land Michael O'Neill for Scotland

Was there ever such a tale of woe, as that of the SFA and its CEO? Apologies to William Shakespeare for such borrowing, but even the Bard of Avon would have had difficulty condensing the catalogue of incident that awaited Stewart Regan – who quit his post yesterday – when he left Yorkshire Cricket Club to take charge of Scottish football’s governing body on July 28, 2010. Within four months, Regan had been forced to sack his head of referee development, Hugh Dallas – along with another four employees – because of a furore generated by their circulation of a satirical email linking the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the child abuse scandal within the Roman Catholic church. The episode attracted condemnation by that unlikely participant in football controversy, the arch-atheist, Richard Dawkins. That eruption overlapped with another refereeing row when Dougie McDonald awarded Celtic a penalty kick in a league match against Dundee United at Tannadice, then reversed his decision, later claiming to have done so on the advice of his linesman, who promptly denounced this version of the incident as a lie. The contribution of inflammatory remarks by John Reid, the Celtic chairman and former Home Secretary, prompted Scotland’s only referees’ strike, with officials being imported from Luxembourg, Malta and Israel to allow fixtures to proceed. Scarcely had this episode died down than an altercation between Celtic manager, Neil Lennon, and his Rangers counterpart, Ally McCoist – during an Old Firm derby at Parkhead in March 2011 – triggered the ire of politicians and contributed to the Offensive Behaviour at Football Act, subsequently passed by the Scottish Parliament in January 2012. Neil Lennon and Ally McCoist clash in 2011 Credit: Reuters That particular piece of legislation is in the process of being scrapped, although it has support from organisations formed to fight sectarianism and racism. If Regan hoped that he might draw breath during the summer of 2012, he could not have been further off the mark. The ramshackle regime of Craig Whyte – who had bought Rangers for £1 from Sir David Murray the previous year – collapsed into liquidation, prompting the biggest crisis ever to engulf the Scottish game, as several contending parties argued about how and where the Ibrox club should be permitted to proceed, if at all. When the Scottish Premier League voted to refuse Rangers permission to rejoin their organisation, Regan spoke out in apocalyptic tones. “Without Rangers there is social unrest – there is a big problem for Scottish society,” he said. “I think if you look at the huge fan base Rangers have in this country, to contemplate a situation where those fans don’t have a team to support, where those fans are effectively left without a game to follow – I just think that could lead to all sorts of issues and all sorts of problems for the game. “Tribalism in football is really important, a part of the game. You can’t contemplate a situation without that and, if Rangers weren’t to exist, I think that could have real dire consequences.” Regan was promptly derided by several Scottish Football League chairmen who alleged that he had effectively threatened them to agree to admit Rangers to their First Division. In the event, Rangers began in the SFL’s third division in 2012-13. Having presided over chaotic situations, not of his making, in respect of referees and clubs, Regan was also obliged to confront Scotland’s long exile from the later stages of major tournaments. When he first arrived at Hampden Park, Regan inherited a national manager in the form of Craig Levein and, for the qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup, the SFA successfully secured Scotland’s first two games at home to Serbia and Macedonia in September 2012. Regan (left) with Gordon Strachan Credit: AFP Both matches, however, ended in draws and when the Scots then lost away to Wales and Belgium the campaign was effectively over. Regan identified Gordon Strachan as the man to take Scotland to Euro 2016 but, after a promising start, Scotland stumbled to a 1-0 defeat by Georgia in Tbilisi and finished fourth in their section behind Germany, Poland and the Republic of Ireland. Strachan was allowed to remain for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers and, but for Harry Kane’s injury time equaliser for England at Hampden Park last June, the Scots would probably have made the play-offs and might now be contemplating their first tournament finals since 1998. Instead, yet another failure prompted Regan to pursue Michael O’Neill as the best qualified candidate to succeed Strachan, but the passage of three months before the Northern Ireland manager’s refusal allowed the chief executive’s critics to gather momentum. He was further undermined by the acceptance of two post-season friendlies in Peru and Mexico, designed to earn the SFA much-needed revenue, but which were denounced by the Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers, whose players make up half the current Scotland team. Some will miss Regan. This correspondent found the departing CEO to be consistently helpful, but it is a truism about football administrators that they cannot satisfy all of their constituents all of the time. Sooner or later the critical mass makes itself heard, as in this case. So, if anybody is inclined to take over a national association without a national team manager, whose players have not tasted qualification success for 20 years, whose main sponsorship deal comes to an end this summer and who do not know if they will play future games at Hampden Park, the home of Scottish football or at Murrayfield, the home of Scottish rugby – then this is the job for you. And, by way of breaking news – Telegraph Sport can confirm that the SFA will not wait for the appointment of a chief executive before renewing their search for a team manager. The probability is that Scotland’s players will have a new boss before the governors of Scottish football appoint their man.

Stewart Regan's SFA reign ends after failure to land Michael O'Neill for Scotland

Was there ever such a tale of woe, as that of the SFA and its CEO? Apologies to William Shakespeare for such borrowing, but even the Bard of Avon would have had difficulty condensing the catalogue of incident that awaited Stewart Regan – who quit his post yesterday – when he left Yorkshire Cricket Club to take charge of Scottish football’s governing body on July 28, 2010. Within four months, Regan had been forced to sack his head of referee development, Hugh Dallas – along with another four employees – because of a furore generated by their circulation of a satirical email linking the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the child abuse scandal within the Roman Catholic church. The episode attracted condemnation by that unlikely participant in football controversy, the arch-atheist, Richard Dawkins. That eruption overlapped with another refereeing row when Dougie McDonald awarded Celtic a penalty kick in a league match against Dundee United at Tannadice, then reversed his decision, later claiming to have done so on the advice of his linesman, who promptly denounced this version of the incident as a lie. The contribution of inflammatory remarks by John Reid, the Celtic chairman and former Home Secretary, prompted Scotland’s only referees’ strike, with officials being imported from Luxembourg, Malta and Israel to allow fixtures to proceed. Scarcely had this episode died down than an altercation between Celtic manager, Neil Lennon, and his Rangers counterpart, Ally McCoist – during an Old Firm derby at Parkhead in March 2011 – triggered the ire of politicians and contributed to the Offensive Behaviour at Football Act, subsequently passed by the Scottish Parliament in January 2012. Neil Lennon and Ally McCoist clash in 2011 Credit: Reuters That particular piece of legislation is in the process of being scrapped, although it has support from organisations formed to fight sectarianism and racism. If Regan hoped that he might draw breath during the summer of 2012, he could not have been further off the mark. The ramshackle regime of Craig Whyte – who had bought Rangers for £1 from Sir David Murray the previous year – collapsed into liquidation, prompting the biggest crisis ever to engulf the Scottish game, as several contending parties argued about how and where the Ibrox club should be permitted to proceed, if at all. When the Scottish Premier League voted to refuse Rangers permission to rejoin their organisation, Regan spoke out in apocalyptic tones. “Without Rangers there is social unrest – there is a big problem for Scottish society,” he said. “I think if you look at the huge fan base Rangers have in this country, to contemplate a situation where those fans don’t have a team to support, where those fans are effectively left without a game to follow – I just think that could lead to all sorts of issues and all sorts of problems for the game. “Tribalism in football is really important, a part of the game. You can’t contemplate a situation without that and, if Rangers weren’t to exist, I think that could have real dire consequences.” Regan was promptly derided by several Scottish Football League chairmen who alleged that he had effectively threatened them to agree to admit Rangers to their First Division. In the event, Rangers began in the SFL’s third division in 2012-13. Having presided over chaotic situations, not of his making, in respect of referees and clubs, Regan was also obliged to confront Scotland’s long exile from the later stages of major tournaments. When he first arrived at Hampden Park, Regan inherited a national manager in the form of Craig Levein and, for the qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup, the SFA successfully secured Scotland’s first two games at home to Serbia and Macedonia in September 2012. Regan (left) with Gordon Strachan Credit: AFP Both matches, however, ended in draws and when the Scots then lost away to Wales and Belgium the campaign was effectively over. Regan identified Gordon Strachan as the man to take Scotland to Euro 2016 but, after a promising start, Scotland stumbled to a 1-0 defeat by Georgia in Tbilisi and finished fourth in their section behind Germany, Poland and the Republic of Ireland. Strachan was allowed to remain for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers and, but for Harry Kane’s injury time equaliser for England at Hampden Park last June, the Scots would probably have made the play-offs and might now be contemplating their first tournament finals since 1998. Instead, yet another failure prompted Regan to pursue Michael O’Neill as the best qualified candidate to succeed Strachan, but the passage of three months before the Northern Ireland manager’s refusal allowed the chief executive’s critics to gather momentum. He was further undermined by the acceptance of two post-season friendlies in Peru and Mexico, designed to earn the SFA much-needed revenue, but which were denounced by the Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers, whose players make up half the current Scotland team. Some will miss Regan. This correspondent found the departing CEO to be consistently helpful, but it is a truism about football administrators that they cannot satisfy all of their constituents all of the time. Sooner or later the critical mass makes itself heard, as in this case. So, if anybody is inclined to take over a national association without a national team manager, whose players have not tasted qualification success for 20 years, whose main sponsorship deal comes to an end this summer and who do not know if they will play future games at Hampden Park, the home of Scottish football or at Murrayfield, the home of Scottish rugby – then this is the job for you. And, by way of breaking news – Telegraph Sport can confirm that the SFA will not wait for the appointment of a chief executive before renewing their search for a team manager. The probability is that Scotland’s players will have a new boss before the governors of Scottish football appoint their man.

Michael O'Neill is set to continue as manager of Northern Ireland after turning down the Scotland job, Press Association Sport understands. The 48-year-old was believed to be close to taking over as Scotland boss following talks last week with the Scottish Football Association. The SFA had agreed to meet a £500,000 compensation payment to the Irish FA in order to secure the services of O'Neill, who had described talks between the parties as "productive". However, after a period of deliberation, O'Neill, who lives in Edinburgh, has decided against taking the post to succeed Gordon Strachan, and will instead remain in charge of Northern Ireland following their failed World Cup qualification campaign. The former Dundee United and Hibernian midfielder has two years left to run on his current deal with the IFA, but has already been offered an extended contract until 2020.

Danny Wilson says Rangers must improve at home to stand a chance of winning trophies

It is a measure of Rangers’ fortunes on and off the field that, if they win on Saturday at home to St Johnstone, they will have recorded five successive league victories for the first time in as many years. The last time they accomplished the feat was between July and September 2011 when, with Ally McCoist in charge, they prevailed against St Johnstone, Inverness Caley Thistle, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Dundee United and Celtic. Later that season, of course, came the club’s financial meltdown under Craig Whyte, after which four campaigns were spent in pursuit of a return to the top flight of Scottish football. That was achieved last year under Mark Warburton but the best sequence assembled by the Englishman in the Scottish Premiership fell between St Andrew’s Day and Christmas Eve, with full points taken from meetings with Aberdeen, Hearts, Hamilton and Inverness. Rangers’ current run, with four successive wins against Aberdeen home and away, Ross County at Ibrox and Hibernian at Easter Road is not, however, evidence of a tide of superior form, as Danny Wilson admitted readily yesterday. At half time in the game against Hibs, the Rangers central defender berated his team mates in the dressing room, despite the fact that they were leading 2-1. “Within those four results there have been some good performances and some really bad performances as a team,” Wilson said. “We can do much better than we did at Hibs. “I haven’t watched the game back but, from playing in it, I felt we were miles off it in terms of what we want to do and achieve as a team. However, we were able to dig the result out and that was probably something people have held against us - that when the going got tough, we went under. Wilson in action during the 2-1 win over Hibs Credit: ACTION PLUS “There’s no doubt we were well below the standards required. The words at half time were to that effect. After the game everyone was obviously delighted with the result and to be able to show that resilience at a tough place like Hibs, where we haven’t enjoyed great results in our last few encounters. We were just delighted to win and continue the run we’re on and now we know we’ll have it tough against St Johnstone.” It was against St Johnstone, albeit in Perth, that last year’s run of wins came to an end and, if Rangers need further warning of potential hazard, they need only reference Tommy Wright’s ability to coax his players into quarrying points from unpromising fixtures. Saints drew home and away with Rangers in the second half of last season and they left Celtic Park with a 1-1 draw in August. Wright is arguably the most undervalued manager in the division – his name scarcely featured in the reckoning for a successor to Pedro Caixinha at Ibrox, a hiatus that has stretched for seven weeks – and the Northern Irishman was in prickly mood on Monday when he said: “Even our own support is negative about us at the minute, but we cannot let that affect us.” Rangers are still searching for a permanent manager but have secured positive results under Graeme Murty's watch Credit: PA St Johnstone lost at home to Aberdeen on Wednesday and Wright surely spies an opportunity in Rangers’ patchy home form. In nine league games at Ibrox, Rangers have won four, drawn two and lost three. “If we want to achieve anything this season we have to fix the home form because it's not been good enough,” said Wilson. “If we had taken more points at home, we would have been closer to first, but we are not looking too far ahead because, like I say, we know where we have just been.” Rangers will be without Kenny Miller, victim of a hamstring injury, and the veteran striker might still be absent when his colleagues travel to Celtic Park on December 30. Graham Dorrans, meanwhile, has not featured in midfield since the 1-1 home draw with Kilmarnock on October 25 and will be out for at least another three months after having undergone ankle surgery. “Graham is really unfortunate and I feel for him,” said Graeme Murty, Rangers’ interim manager. “On medical advice we took a conservative path with his initial rehab and that didn’t work. "I know he’s down and he’s quite low and before we talk about length of time being out I want to make sure the fellow is alright. Having been there myself, I know that coming up to Christmas it’s a brilliant time to be a footballer. “You get loads of games and at home everything is done for you. It’s all geared towards you performing in an extended way and you do miss it. We have to make sure Graham as a person is taken care of and then we’ll take care of the player after that.”

Danny Wilson says Rangers must improve at home to stand a chance of winning trophies

It is a measure of Rangers’ fortunes on and off the field that, if they win on Saturday at home to St Johnstone, they will have recorded five successive league victories for the first time in as many years. The last time they accomplished the feat was between July and September 2011 when, with Ally McCoist in charge, they prevailed against St Johnstone, Inverness Caley Thistle, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Dundee United and Celtic. Later that season, of course, came the club’s financial meltdown under Craig Whyte, after which four campaigns were spent in pursuit of a return to the top flight of Scottish football. That was achieved last year under Mark Warburton but the best sequence assembled by the Englishman in the Scottish Premiership fell between St Andrew’s Day and Christmas Eve, with full points taken from meetings with Aberdeen, Hearts, Hamilton and Inverness. Rangers’ current run, with four successive wins against Aberdeen home and away, Ross County at Ibrox and Hibernian at Easter Road is not, however, evidence of a tide of superior form, as Danny Wilson admitted readily yesterday. At half time in the game against Hibs, the Rangers central defender berated his team mates in the dressing room, despite the fact that they were leading 2-1. “Within those four results there have been some good performances and some really bad performances as a team,” Wilson said. “We can do much better than we did at Hibs. “I haven’t watched the game back but, from playing in it, I felt we were miles off it in terms of what we want to do and achieve as a team. However, we were able to dig the result out and that was probably something people have held against us - that when the going got tough, we went under. Wilson in action during the 2-1 win over Hibs Credit: ACTION PLUS “There’s no doubt we were well below the standards required. The words at half time were to that effect. After the game everyone was obviously delighted with the result and to be able to show that resilience at a tough place like Hibs, where we haven’t enjoyed great results in our last few encounters. We were just delighted to win and continue the run we’re on and now we know we’ll have it tough against St Johnstone.” It was against St Johnstone, albeit in Perth, that last year’s run of wins came to an end and, if Rangers need further warning of potential hazard, they need only reference Tommy Wright’s ability to coax his players into quarrying points from unpromising fixtures. Saints drew home and away with Rangers in the second half of last season and they left Celtic Park with a 1-1 draw in August. Wright is arguably the most undervalued manager in the division – his name scarcely featured in the reckoning for a successor to Pedro Caixinha at Ibrox, a hiatus that has stretched for seven weeks – and the Northern Irishman was in prickly mood on Monday when he said: “Even our own support is negative about us at the minute, but we cannot let that affect us.” Rangers are still searching for a permanent manager but have secured positive results under Graeme Murty's watch Credit: PA St Johnstone lost at home to Aberdeen on Wednesday and Wright surely spies an opportunity in Rangers’ patchy home form. In nine league games at Ibrox, Rangers have won four, drawn two and lost three. “If we want to achieve anything this season we have to fix the home form because it's not been good enough,” said Wilson. “If we had taken more points at home, we would have been closer to first, but we are not looking too far ahead because, like I say, we know where we have just been.” Rangers will be without Kenny Miller, victim of a hamstring injury, and the veteran striker might still be absent when his colleagues travel to Celtic Park on December 30. Graham Dorrans, meanwhile, has not featured in midfield since the 1-1 home draw with Kilmarnock on October 25 and will be out for at least another three months after having undergone ankle surgery. “Graham is really unfortunate and I feel for him,” said Graeme Murty, Rangers’ interim manager. “On medical advice we took a conservative path with his initial rehab and that didn’t work. "I know he’s down and he’s quite low and before we talk about length of time being out I want to make sure the fellow is alright. Having been there myself, I know that coming up to Christmas it’s a brilliant time to be a footballer. “You get loads of games and at home everything is done for you. It’s all geared towards you performing in an extended way and you do miss it. We have to make sure Graham as a person is taken care of and then we’ll take care of the player after that.”

Danny Wilson says Rangers must improve at home to stand a chance of winning trophies

It is a measure of Rangers’ fortunes on and off the field that, if they win on Saturday at home to St Johnstone, they will have recorded five successive league victories for the first time in as many years. The last time they accomplished the feat was between July and September 2011 when, with Ally McCoist in charge, they prevailed against St Johnstone, Inverness Caley Thistle, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Dundee United and Celtic. Later that season, of course, came the club’s financial meltdown under Craig Whyte, after which four campaigns were spent in pursuit of a return to the top flight of Scottish football. That was achieved last year under Mark Warburton but the best sequence assembled by the Englishman in the Scottish Premiership fell between St Andrew’s Day and Christmas Eve, with full points taken from meetings with Aberdeen, Hearts, Hamilton and Inverness. Rangers’ current run, with four successive wins against Aberdeen home and away, Ross County at Ibrox and Hibernian at Easter Road is not, however, evidence of a tide of superior form, as Danny Wilson admitted readily yesterday. At half time in the game against Hibs, the Rangers central defender berated his team mates in the dressing room, despite the fact that they were leading 2-1. “Within those four results there have been some good performances and some really bad performances as a team,” Wilson said. “We can do much better than we did at Hibs. “I haven’t watched the game back but, from playing in it, I felt we were miles off it in terms of what we want to do and achieve as a team. However, we were able to dig the result out and that was probably something people have held against us - that when the going got tough, we went under. Wilson in action during the 2-1 win over Hibs Credit: ACTION PLUS “There’s no doubt we were well below the standards required. The words at half time were to that effect. After the game everyone was obviously delighted with the result and to be able to show that resilience at a tough place like Hibs, where we haven’t enjoyed great results in our last few encounters. We were just delighted to win and continue the run we’re on and now we know we’ll have it tough against St Johnstone.” It was against St Johnstone, albeit in Perth, that last year’s run of wins came to an end and, if Rangers need further warning of potential hazard, they need only reference Tommy Wright’s ability to coax his players into quarrying points from unpromising fixtures. Saints drew home and away with Rangers in the second half of last season and they left Celtic Park with a 1-1 draw in August. Wright is arguably the most undervalued manager in the division – his name scarcely featured in the reckoning for a successor to Pedro Caixinha at Ibrox, a hiatus that has stretched for seven weeks – and the Northern Irishman was in prickly mood on Monday when he said: “Even our own support is negative about us at the minute, but we cannot let that affect us.” Rangers are still searching for a permanent manager but have secured positive results under Graeme Murty's watch Credit: PA St Johnstone lost at home to Aberdeen on Wednesday and Wright surely spies an opportunity in Rangers’ patchy home form. In nine league games at Ibrox, Rangers have won four, drawn two and lost three. “If we want to achieve anything this season we have to fix the home form because it's not been good enough,” said Wilson. “If we had taken more points at home, we would have been closer to first, but we are not looking too far ahead because, like I say, we know where we have just been.” Rangers will be without Kenny Miller, victim of a hamstring injury, and the veteran striker might still be absent when his colleagues travel to Celtic Park on December 30. Graham Dorrans, meanwhile, has not featured in midfield since the 1-1 home draw with Kilmarnock on October 25 and will be out for at least another three months after having undergone ankle surgery. “Graham is really unfortunate and I feel for him,” said Graeme Murty, Rangers’ interim manager. “On medical advice we took a conservative path with his initial rehab and that didn’t work. "I know he’s down and he’s quite low and before we talk about length of time being out I want to make sure the fellow is alright. Having been there myself, I know that coming up to Christmas it’s a brilliant time to be a footballer. “You get loads of games and at home everything is done for you. It’s all geared towards you performing in an extended way and you do miss it. We have to make sure Graham as a person is taken care of and then we’ll take care of the player after that.”

If Michael O’Neill becomes Scotland manager, Brendan Rodgers will form an alliance with his Northern Irish compatriot for their mutual benefit, according to the Celtic manager. O’Neill will meet the Scottish Football Association next week to discuss the national team job, vacant since Gordon Strachan’s departure last month. Should he accept, he will inherit a group of Celtic players who formed the backbone of Strachan’s team. Asked if he expected to be speaking regularly with O’Neill under such circumstances, Rodgers said: “Absolutely, and I want to help. There is a real energy about the Celtic players when they go there, a real core of them that can help. “He has lived in Scotland for a number of years, played in Scotland and knows what you are all like. “He has spent six years or so at Northern Ireland and has done a European Championship and just missed out on a World Cup. Their top players over the next few years will move on. “If you look at Scotland, it is an exciting group and if he can pull them together and develop them, then he would maybe have a chance of getting them to their first Euros in 20-odd years and then maybe on to a World Cup after that. I am sure it is one he will think about.” Rodgers thinks St Johnstone's Tommy Wright would be a perfect replacement for Michael O'Neill at Northern Ireland Credit: Jane Barlow/PA Rodgers also backed another fellow countryman to take over the Northern Ireland job should O’Neill quit. Tommy Wright, the St Johnstone manager, has surmounted the Perth club’s limited resources to post three successive fourth-place finishes and in 2014 guided them to their first major trophy success with a victory over Dundee United in the Scottish Cup final. Surprisingly to some, Wright has not been in the frame for the managerial vacancy at Rangers, for which the favourite remains Aberdeen’s Derek McInnes, but his feats have been noted by the Irish Football Association. “Tommy would be perfect for Northern Ireland if Michael moved on,” said Rodgers. “He has earned his stripes at St Johnstone. For me, for the Rangers job, Derek McInnes and him would be obvious stand-outs, but I really hope he gets the chance given the work he has done to do it on a bigger stage.” The resumption of domestic fixtures after the international break sees Celtic travel to Dingwall tomorrow where they will attempt to extend their run of successive unbeaten domestic fixtures to 64 against Ross County. “It’ll end at some point,” Rodgers said. “We only focus on the next game. The squad is coming back now. I see the competitiveness in the players – we have Patrick Roberts, Jozo Simunovic and Leigh Griffiths back training this week. Erik [Sviatchenko] played 45 minutes of a practice match last week. They are fit, if not football fit, but the availability is there.” That match will mark another milestone in the career path of Kieran Tierney, when the defender makes his 100th appearance for Celtic at the ripe old age of 20. He also earned the accolade of captain of Scotland in the recent friendly with The Netherlands. “He can be a great leader for Scotland and I think he will be a captain here at Celtic one day,” said Rodgers. “He is developing and maturing on and off the field. I heard him speak at the end of the season at the Scottish Football Writers’ Association dinner and thought he spoke so well. It is nice to see young players come on in all aspects.”

If Michael O’Neill becomes Scotland manager, Brendan Rodgers will form an alliance with his Northern Irish compatriot for their mutual benefit, according to the Celtic manager. O’Neill will meet the Scottish Football Association next week to discuss the national team job, vacant since Gordon Strachan’s departure last month. Should he accept, he will inherit a group of Celtic players who formed the backbone of Strachan’s team. Asked if he expected to be speaking regularly with O’Neill under such circumstances, Rodgers said: “Absolutely, and I want to help. There is a real energy about the Celtic players when they go there, a real core of them that can help. “He has lived in Scotland for a number of years, played in Scotland and knows what you are all like. “He has spent six years or so at Northern Ireland and has done a European Championship and just missed out on a World Cup. Their top players over the next few years will move on. “If you look at Scotland, it is an exciting group and if he can pull them together and develop them, then he would maybe have a chance of getting them to their first Euros in 20-odd years and then maybe on to a World Cup after that. I am sure it is one he will think about.” Rodgers thinks St Johnstone's Tommy Wright would be a perfect replacement for Michael O'Neill at Northern Ireland Credit: Jane Barlow/PA Rodgers also backed another fellow countryman to take over the Northern Ireland job should O’Neill quit. Tommy Wright, the St Johnstone manager, has surmounted the Perth club’s limited resources to post three successive fourth-place finishes and in 2014 guided them to their first major trophy success with a victory over Dundee United in the Scottish Cup final. Surprisingly to some, Wright has not been in the frame for the managerial vacancy at Rangers, for which the favourite remains Aberdeen’s Derek McInnes, but his feats have been noted by the Irish Football Association. “Tommy would be perfect for Northern Ireland if Michael moved on,” said Rodgers. “He has earned his stripes at St Johnstone. For me, for the Rangers job, Derek McInnes and him would be obvious stand-outs, but I really hope he gets the chance given the work he has done to do it on a bigger stage.” The resumption of domestic fixtures after the international break sees Celtic travel to Dingwall tomorrow where they will attempt to extend their run of successive unbeaten domestic fixtures to 64 against Ross County. “It’ll end at some point,” Rodgers said. “We only focus on the next game. The squad is coming back now. I see the competitiveness in the players – we have Patrick Roberts, Jozo Simunovic and Leigh Griffiths back training this week. Erik [Sviatchenko] played 45 minutes of a practice match last week. They are fit, if not football fit, but the availability is there.” That match will mark another milestone in the career path of Kieran Tierney, when the defender makes his 100th appearance for Celtic at the ripe old age of 20. He also earned the accolade of captain of Scotland in the recent friendly with The Netherlands. “He can be a great leader for Scotland and I think he will be a captain here at Celtic one day,” said Rodgers. “He is developing and maturing on and off the field. I heard him speak at the end of the season at the Scottish Football Writers’ Association dinner and thought he spoke so well. It is nice to see young players come on in all aspects.”

Scottish clubs set national charity records, with SPFL now 'fourth most community-focused league in the world'

Scottish football has not been at the top table of international competition for 20 years – hence the SFA’s urgent desire to find a manager with the Midas touch – but the country’s clubs have never been more successful at providing aid to charities and worthy causes in their communities. Independent research commissioned by the Scottish Professional Football League has revealed that 770,000 local people – an annual increase of over 60,000 - have been engaged in community initiatives involving all 42 league clubs. The research also found that season ticket holders were well served by making a commitment to back their team throughout the campaign. Headline figures show that clubs engaged with approximately 772,000 people via community activity in season 2016/17, many supported by programmes run and organised by the SPFL Trust, the charitable arm of the league. Around 86 per cent of all clubs provide free tickets to matches for community groups, charities and other worthy causes, with an estimated total of 84,000 donated last season. The number of clubs offering free admission to children has risen to 62 per cent, up 5 per cent on last year’s figure. The average maximum saving for supporters across all four divisions buying a 2017/18 season ticket is £96.20, when compared with paying at the gate. Attendance figures also told an encouraging story, with total crowds for the four Ladbrokes divisions exceeding four million in season 2016/17, a 12 per cent increase year on year, while almost a quarter of a million supporters attended the first two matches of the 2017/18 season to set a new record for the SPFL. Nicky Reid, chief executive of the SPFL Trust, said: “The recent Responsiball annual report now places the SPFL as the fourth most community-focused league in the world, based on their analysis of the 25 biggest national competitions. “A rise of three places year on year, shows that this is an area of significant strength and opportunity for Scottish football. In the past year, the SPFL Trust and our clubs have been trusted to work on projects funded by the Scottish Government, Big Lottery Fund, Erasmus, Scottish Water, Kinder+Sport, and the SPFL itself amongst others. “Our Trusted Trophy Tour also visited more than 20 clubs and demonstrated the power that football has for good across a wide range of projects. Trust is hard-earned and we all accept the responsibilities that come with that, but the direction of travel is extremely positive.” The SFA, meanwhile, announced that its Elite club football academies are Aberdeen, Celtic, Hamilton, Heart of Midlothian, Hibernian, Kilmarnock, Motherwell and Rangers. The second-tier Progressive grade consists of Ayr United, Dundee United, Forth Valley, Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Partick Thistle, Ross County,St Mirren and St Johnstone. The third-tier Progressive level academies are Dundee, Fife, Greenock Morton and Queen’s Park. Scottish FA Performance Director Malky Mackay said: “What I would like to stress is that the bandings are not fixed and they will be reassessed in June 2018. No door is closed to clubs outside of the Elite bracket with aspirations to move up.”

Michael O’Neill returned to his Edinburgh home late on Monday afternoon to find that the bookmakers had not only installed him as favourite for the vacant Scotland manager’s job but had made him third favourite for the similarly unfilled position at Rangers. Sensibly, the Northern Ireland manager will take a couple of days to reflect on the outcome of the World Cup play-off which saw Switzerland progress to the finals in Russia next summer thanks to the award of a nonsensical penalty kick in the first leg in Belfast. O’Neill’s position, as stated after Sunday’s goalless draw in Basel, is that he is under contract to the Irish Football Association and that it would be improper to speak about other positions. That said, at the age of 48 and after six years with the Northern Ireland team, it would be remarkable if O’Neill were not contemplating a fresh start and there must also be an allure in the prospect of a switch to day-to-day involvement at club level rather than the spasmodic challenge of the international game. The utterances of Stewart Regan, chief executive of the Scottish Football Association, have been scrutinised for clues to what might transpire at Hampden Park. With no interest in the World Cup finals, following failure to clear the group stage qualifying hurdles under Gordon Strachan the Scots have a friendly in Morocco in March and another in early summer before they resume competitive action in the Uefa Nations League next September. “We might have a new manager in place for those friendlies, but if we haven’t, it’s not the end of the world,” Regan said last month when announcing that Malky Mackay would act as interim manager for the friendly meeting with Holland at Pittodrie, which Scotland lost 1-0 last Thursday. One immediate assumption was that the SFA had identified O’Neill as its principal target and were prepared to wait, if Northern Ireland were to reach the finals. Sam Wallace's Power Rankings 42:04 Regan also revealed on the day of the Dutch friendly that Mackay would not be considered as a long-term candidate, prompting speculation that the SFA was clearing the way for a speedy approach to the IFA if circumstances changed quickly, as they have done. Certainly, O’Neill is as familiar with the Scottish scene as any candidate could be. He played for Dundee United, Hibernian, St Johnstone, Clydebank and Ayr United and his first management job was at Brechin City between 2006 and 2008. Moreover, O’Neill has conscripted a core of players who either play or have played for Scottish clubs, to the extent that recent squad have featured no fewer than 17 with that experience, the newest recruit being Jordan Jones of Kilmarnock, who made his debut appearance in the play-off second leg against Switzerland on Sunday. Telegraph Sport can confirm, however, that although the SFA is considering O’Neill as a candidate, its still trimming its initial roster of possible targets and has not yet reached the stage of a short-list. O’Neill’s glowing credential is that he steered Northern Ireland to their first tournament finals in 30 years and their first ever European championship when they reached Euro 2016. He also got the team beyond the group stage, an accomplishment that has never been matched by any Scotland manager. One curiosity that will surely interest the SFA, though, is that O’Neill’s win rate with Northern Ireland stands at 34.35%, compared to Gordon Strachan’s return of 44.35%. Michael O'Neill has a worse win percentage than Gordon Strachan but almost took Northern Ireland to the World Cup Credit: GETTY IMAGES As for conjecture about Rangers, an appointment to the Ibrox job would be a fascinating cultural development, given that O’Neill is a Roman Catholic from Northern Ireland, whose education included a spell at Presentation Covent Primary School in Portadown and All Saints in Ballymana and who would certainly be the first manager of the Light Blues who played Gaelic football as a boy. It would be doubly intriguing were he ever to take over at Ibrox with his fellow countryman, Jimmy Nicholl, a former Rangers favourite, as his assistant. Nicholl, indeed, recently declared that O’Neill would not remain in international football in the event of Northern Ireland failing to make the World Cup finals. “He’s young enough – if he gets a good opportunity and a good challenge at a big club on a day-to-day basis, then he’ll go,” Nicholl told BBC Scotland last month. One other consideration which might yet materialise is a club job in Scotland, but not at Ibrox. Should Rangers make a successful move for Derek McInnes, the bookies’ favourite for their vacant position, then Aberdeen would be in the market for a new manager. In those circumstances an obvious candidate – very likely the favourite – would be a man who played six games for the Dons during a loan spell in 1998. Fellow by name of O’Neill, in case you hadn’t guessed.

Michael O’Neill returned to his Edinburgh home late on Monday afternoon to find that the bookmakers had not only installed him as favourite for the vacant Scotland manager’s job but had made him third favourite for the similarly unfilled position at Rangers. Sensibly, the Northern Ireland manager will take a couple of days to reflect on the outcome of the World Cup play-off which saw Switzerland progress to the finals in Russia next summer thanks to the award of a nonsensical penalty kick in the first leg in Belfast. O’Neill’s position, as stated after Sunday’s goalless draw in Basel, is that he is under contract to the Irish Football Association and that it would be improper to speak about other positions. That said, at the age of 48 and after six years with the Northern Ireland team, it would be remarkable if O’Neill were not contemplating a fresh start and there must also be an allure in the prospect of a switch to day-to-day involvement at club level rather than the spasmodic challenge of the international game. The utterances of Stewart Regan, chief executive of the Scottish Football Association, have been scrutinised for clues to what might transpire at Hampden Park. With no interest in the World Cup finals, following failure to clear the group stage qualifying hurdles under Gordon Strachan the Scots have a friendly in Morocco in March and another in early summer before they resume competitive action in the Uefa Nations League next September. “We might have a new manager in place for those friendlies, but if we haven’t, it’s not the end of the world,” Regan said last month when announcing that Malky Mackay would act as interim manager for the friendly meeting with Holland at Pittodrie, which Scotland lost 1-0 last Thursday. One immediate assumption was that the SFA had identified O’Neill as its principal target and were prepared to wait, if Northern Ireland were to reach the finals. Sam Wallace's Power Rankings 42:04 Regan also revealed on the day of the Dutch friendly that Mackay would not be considered as a long-term candidate, prompting speculation that the SFA was clearing the way for a speedy approach to the IFA if circumstances changed quickly, as they have done. Certainly, O’Neill is as familiar with the Scottish scene as any candidate could be. He played for Dundee United, Hibernian, St Johnstone, Clydebank and Ayr United and his first management job was at Brechin City between 2006 and 2008. Moreover, O’Neill has conscripted a core of players who either play or have played for Scottish clubs, to the extent that recent squad have featured no fewer than 17 with that experience, the newest recruit being Jordan Jones of Kilmarnock, who made his debut appearance in the play-off second leg against Switzerland on Sunday. Telegraph Sport can confirm, however, that although the SFA is considering O’Neill as a candidate, its still trimming its initial roster of possible targets and has not yet reached the stage of a short-list. O’Neill’s glowing credential is that he steered Northern Ireland to their first tournament finals in 30 years and their first ever European championship when they reached Euro 2016. He also got the team beyond the group stage, an accomplishment that has never been matched by any Scotland manager. One curiosity that will surely interest the SFA, though, is that O’Neill’s win rate with Northern Ireland stands at 34.35%, compared to Gordon Strachan’s return of 44.35%. Michael O'Neill has a worse win percentage than Gordon Strachan but almost took Northern Ireland to the World Cup Credit: GETTY IMAGES As for conjecture about Rangers, an appointment to the Ibrox job would be a fascinating cultural development, given that O’Neill is a Roman Catholic from Northern Ireland, whose education included a spell at Presentation Covent Primary School in Portadown and All Saints in Ballymana and who would certainly be the first manager of the Light Blues who played Gaelic football as a boy. It would be doubly intriguing were he ever to take over at Ibrox with his fellow countryman, Jimmy Nicholl, a former Rangers favourite, as his assistant. Nicholl, indeed, recently declared that O’Neill would not remain in international football in the event of Northern Ireland failing to make the World Cup finals. “He’s young enough – if he gets a good opportunity and a good challenge at a big club on a day-to-day basis, then he’ll go,” Nicholl told BBC Scotland last month. One other consideration which might yet materialise is a club job in Scotland, but not at Ibrox. Should Rangers make a successful move for Derek McInnes, the bookies’ favourite for their vacant position, then Aberdeen would be in the market for a new manager. In those circumstances an obvious candidate – very likely the favourite – would be a man who played six games for the Dons during a loan spell in 1998. Fellow by name of O’Neill, in case you hadn’t guessed.

Brendan Rodgers welcomes Neil Lennon back to Celtic Park and sings his praises

Were the rate of managerial attrition in Celtic’s Champions League group to continue, Brendan Rodgers would soon be out of a job. Happily for Celtic fans, the Northern Irishman is under no threat, by contrast to Rene Weiler and Carlo Ancelotti, who began the season in charge of Anderlecht and Bayern Munich respectively but who have been numbered amongst the early casualties of disappointing form. In Weiler’s case, a poor start to the Belgian league season saw him gone before Anderlecht lost to Celtic in their Champions League group encounter on Wednesday while Bayern parted company with Ancelotti on Thursday after the Bundesliga club lost by the same score to Paris Saint-Germain in the other game in the section. “Carlo will probably go to Barcelona or somewhere, but my feelings this week were for Jim McIntyre and Peter Houston,” said Rodgers, of the men sacked by Ross County and Falkirk. “I didn't really see or understand the role Jim played at Ross County until I came to Celtic. “I then analysed what he'd done - winning the League Cup and keeping them up. Roy MacGregor [the Staggies’ chairman] is a lovely guy and has done brilliant work for Ross County and the area, but I have real empathy for Jim losing his job. “Look at the work he's done and the fixtures he's had. They’ve played ourselves, Aberdeen, Rangers and Hibs. I watched the full game last week and it wasn't a performance where you say the players aren't really playing for him. “I have real empathy for Jim and Peter Houston, who has been about for a long time. He's a very good coach, who did a great job for Dundee United and then Falkirk.” It has been a great honour to form part of Bayern’s history. I would like to thank the Club, the Players and it's amazing fans. #MiaSanMiapic.twitter.com/oZ7mLllers— Carlo Ancelotti (@MrAncelotti) September 28, 2017 On Saturday, Rodgers comes up against one of his predecessors at Celtic, when Hibernian arrive in the east end of Glasgow, where their manager, Neil Lennon, was a favourite, both as a player and during his spell in charge between 2010 and 2014. “If I wasn’t here, if I was to say who’ll be Celtic manager I would say Neil Lennon,” said Rodgers of the man who won three titles for the Parkhead side. “He was very good in his time here and if it ever comes to him again he would do equally as well if not better.” When Lennon left, partly because of the absence of competition following Rangers’ financial meltdown and spell in the lower leagues, Rodgers imagined that he and his fellow countryman might engage in a Merseyside rivalry. “I was at Liverpool and there was talk then of David Moyes going to Manchester United and I thought that Everton would have been a perfect job for Neil. Neil Lennon returns to Celtic Park on Saturday to play the club he graced in midfield and the dugout Credit: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire “There is no doubt he deserved a better offer. That's no disrespect to Bolton - if they'd been in the Premier League, it would have been a great job. I felt Neil was a Premier League manager in waiting. “Maybe that's because I know the size of Celtic and what the demands and challenges are at a club like this. I could see how he'd managed that and looked at what could be his next step. “Part of my admiration for him comes from his openness and the courage he showed to come out and speak openly about his depression. I read his book and it was a real admission of his life and where he was at and it takes a lot of courage to do that. “He was a real pioneer. That was nearly a decade ago. Then there was everything else that surrounded his time here too which wasn’t nice and you don’t want anyone to go through. This is a job that is big enough itself without any additional pressures.” Celtic are bidding for a 58th successive domestic game unbeaten but they must achieve it without Scott Brown and Stuart Armstrong, both of whom have hamstring injuries which will also keep them out of Scotland’s World Cup double header against Slovakia and Slovenia. “It’s just absolutely so unlucky for us and their unavailability for tomorrow but also for Scotland, which is a huge loss,” Rodgers said.

Brendan Rodgers welcomes Neil Lennon back to Celtic Park and sings his praises

Were the rate of managerial attrition in Celtic’s Champions League group to continue, Brendan Rodgers would soon be out of a job. Happily for Celtic fans, the Northern Irishman is under no threat, by contrast to Rene Weiler and Carlo Ancelotti, who began the season in charge of Anderlecht and Bayern Munich respectively but who have been numbered amongst the early casualties of disappointing form. In Weiler’s case, a poor start to the Belgian league season saw him gone before Anderlecht lost to Celtic in their Champions League group encounter on Wednesday while Bayern parted company with Ancelotti on Thursday after the Bundesliga club lost by the same score to Paris Saint-Germain in the other game in the section. “Carlo will probably go to Barcelona or somewhere, but my feelings this week were for Jim McIntyre and Peter Houston,” said Rodgers, of the men sacked by Ross County and Falkirk. “I didn't really see or understand the role Jim played at Ross County until I came to Celtic. “I then analysed what he'd done - winning the League Cup and keeping them up. Roy MacGregor [the Staggies’ chairman] is a lovely guy and has done brilliant work for Ross County and the area, but I have real empathy for Jim losing his job. “Look at the work he's done and the fixtures he's had. They’ve played ourselves, Aberdeen, Rangers and Hibs. I watched the full game last week and it wasn't a performance where you say the players aren't really playing for him. “I have real empathy for Jim and Peter Houston, who has been about for a long time. He's a very good coach, who did a great job for Dundee United and then Falkirk.” It has been a great honour to form part of Bayern’s history. I would like to thank the Club, the Players and it's amazing fans. #MiaSanMiapic.twitter.com/oZ7mLllers— Carlo Ancelotti (@MrAncelotti) September 28, 2017 On Saturday, Rodgers comes up against one of his predecessors at Celtic, when Hibernian arrive in the east end of Glasgow, where their manager, Neil Lennon, was a favourite, both as a player and during his spell in charge between 2010 and 2014. “If I wasn’t here, if I was to say who’ll be Celtic manager I would say Neil Lennon,” said Rodgers of the man who won three titles for the Parkhead side. “He was very good in his time here and if it ever comes to him again he would do equally as well if not better.” When Lennon left, partly because of the absence of competition following Rangers’ financial meltdown and spell in the lower leagues, Rodgers imagined that he and his fellow countryman might engage in a Merseyside rivalry. “I was at Liverpool and there was talk then of David Moyes going to Manchester United and I thought that Everton would have been a perfect job for Neil. Neil Lennon returns to Celtic Park on Saturday to play the club he graced in midfield and the dugout Credit: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire “There is no doubt he deserved a better offer. That's no disrespect to Bolton - if they'd been in the Premier League, it would have been a great job. I felt Neil was a Premier League manager in waiting. “Maybe that's because I know the size of Celtic and what the demands and challenges are at a club like this. I could see how he'd managed that and looked at what could be his next step. “Part of my admiration for him comes from his openness and the courage he showed to come out and speak openly about his depression. I read his book and it was a real admission of his life and where he was at and it takes a lot of courage to do that. “He was a real pioneer. That was nearly a decade ago. Then there was everything else that surrounded his time here too which wasn’t nice and you don’t want anyone to go through. This is a job that is big enough itself without any additional pressures.” Celtic are bidding for a 58th successive domestic game unbeaten but they must achieve it without Scott Brown and Stuart Armstrong, both of whom have hamstring injuries which will also keep them out of Scotland’s World Cup double header against Slovakia and Slovenia. “It’s just absolutely so unlucky for us and their unavailability for tomorrow but also for Scotland, which is a huge loss,” Rodgers said.

Dundee United, da Escócia, coloca goleiro à venda no Twitter

Dundee United, da Escócia, coloca goleiro à venda no Twitter

Dame Laura Davies plans to channel her inner Tom Watson to defy age and push for glory at Women's British Open

In her 37th successive Ricoh Women’s British Open, Dame Laura Davies plans to channel her inner Tom Watson and remind everyone of her enduring qualities at Kingsbarns. While Davies is 53 and Watson was 59 when he was beaten by a play-off at the Open at Turnberry in 2009, that was “only” his 32nd appearance in the British major. Davies ensured her staggering run continued by coming through qualifying on Monday. And the Godmother of English golf is not in Fife merely to wave at the galleries. “Obviously Tom Watson nearly won it a few years back and links golf is a great leveller. If ever you're going to have a chance, this would be the sort of course,” Davies said. “It would be as big a shock when Tom was in there, when, let's face it, he should have won it.” VIDEO: Tom Watson reacts to Open playoff 01:02 The four-time major winner, who lifted this title 31 years ago, is known for being fond of a gamble and, although she is not allowed to invest on golf events, she feels the ridiculous 1500-1 odds might represent some value. “I wouldn't put anyone off it,” she said. “The results say that I'm going to do rubbish, but I know and my caddie knows how well we're playing. I fully expect to have a half-decent week, I really do, because I'm driving it so well. "I'm not saying I can win it - obviously that'd be a ludicrous statement. But I think I can make the cut and have a good weekend. The last time at Birkdale, about three years ago, I finished ninth and I'm playing better now than I was then. There's no point being here if you don't back yourself to have a decent week. It does look very open this week.” Indeed, it is hard to pick out a winner. At least one of the Korean trio of world No 1 So Yeon Rui, Sung Hyun Park and Inbee Park must feature, while Lexi Thompson, the American who has climbed to a career-high world No 2, would be a popular winner after the rules controversy which cost her victory in the Ana Inspiration, the first major of the year. And the 22 year-old has a local connection, too. Thompson’s caddie, Kevin McAlpine, is the son of Hamish, the highly-popular goalkeeper for nearby Dundee United from the 60s through to the 80s.

Dundee United v Dynamo Moscow UEFA Europa League Third Qualifying Round First Leg

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson: 'I was at the bottom of the game - that drives me on'

Most successful sports people can recall one crossroads in a career, an event that made the difference between turning professional and reciting the “could have been a contender” speech. For Liverpool’s new £10 million left-back Andy Robertson, there is already a catalogue of such defining moments. At 15, Robertson was told by Celtic he was too small and timid to play at the highest level, a crushing disappointment he says inspired him to prove the sceptics wrong. By 18, now working in the corporate department at Hampden Park while playing amateur football for Queen’s Park, Robertson was given a deadline by his supportive but realistic parents; secure a professional contract in the next 12 months or consider alternatives. Whatever challenges face him at Anfield, Robertson is used to playing for the highest stakes. Robertson is on pre-season tour with Liverpool in Germany “For the first few years when I was in the youth side at Queen’s Park it was fine because I was still at school,” says Robertson. “I was grateful to my mum and dad because [after leaving school] they said, ‘We will give you this season to try and push on and make that dream a reality, but after that you might have to look at other options’. I was going down the line of needing to apply for university or college or maybe becoming a PE teacher or something in sports science. Queen’s Park was amateur so you do not get paid. You need to make a living with that. “I worked in Hampden Park taking phone calls and [ticket] orders for games. We trained twice a week at night and played games on Saturday, so I was working 9 to 5 and then having to train. “There was a guy, Andy McGlennan, who had worked at Queen’s Park for years and he was high up at Hampden so sorted a lot of the boys out with jobs. He looked after us and made sure I had some money in my pocket with a bit of hard work. He knew what the dream was and helped me.” Liverpool XI of great Scots Rejection by Celtic, Robertson’s boyhood side who as a fan he watched knock Liverpool out of the 2003 Uefa Cup (his father grew up worshipping Kenny Dalglish), left a scar. “There was a transition going on at Celtic at the time where a new head of youth had come in. I didn’t fit the bill,” said Robertson. “He came from Motherwell, who were full of big lads and were physical. That wasn’t my game. I was small. I’m not big now but it took me time to grow and fill out. “He saw a small guy playing centre-mid, left-mid or left-back who was quite weak. To be fair I was, but I believed in my ability. “That was the first time I had anyone doubt me. Tommy Burns [the former Celtic manager and head of youth development] was great with me and when he died it hit everyone hard. He was different class with me, he liked me as a player, he liked me as a person and he could see what potential I had. “He sadly passed away and Celtic went another route afterwards, one which was hard on some players, but good for others that maybe didn’t fit Tommy’s vision. How much has your Premier League club spent this summer? “Being rejected was quite hard because I was a Celtic fan from birth. It took nearly a full season to get over that disappointment. My first year at Queen’s Park, I just wasn’t good enough, but that tough period shaped me. “I’ve had a few doubters since then, but you’ve just got to continuously prove them wrong because if you are, it means you’re doing things right. Looking back on it now, being released was the best thing that could have happened to me.” So has there been any contact from those at Celtic’s academy who made such an expensive mistake? “I don’t want them being in touch just because of what’s happened now,” he says in the luxurious surrounding of Liverpool’s German training camp in Rottach-Egern. “Would they be in touch if it worked out the other way and I was a PE teacher somewhere? No.” Robertson impressed Jurgen Klopp with his performances as Hull Credit: Getty Images Robertson could not have imagined it was his response to this childhood setback, thriving at Dundee United and Hull City, that caught Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp’s attention as much as his stylish full-back performances. Klopp empathised with what he described as the 23-year-old’s “incredible personal journey”. “The manager wants to know the person as well as he knows the footballer,” said Robertson. “He was asking me about my story. He told me about himself and wanted to know all about me. “I saw the quotes when I signed for Liverpool and he obviously liked my journey from the bottom of Scottish football to where I am now. It has driven me along.” The Anfield interest in Robertson pre-dates Klopp – he was first under consideration two summers ago – but he left an impression on the German coach when shining for Hull last season. Steve Heighway’s most successful Liverpool Academy XI Robertson lived with the rumours of a Liverpool bid for a while, but said he only felt sure of their interest once an offer was made. “It’s hard because there are scouts at every game. They can tell your agent or whoever they are looking at you, but you never really know,” he said. “I’m sure they go there with an open mind and it is about who catches their eye. That’s the nature of football. You don’t take too much attention until there is a formal bid. There was a lot of speculation about it but that’s football. You just need to get your head down, work hard and make it a reality. “When Liverpool come in it’s a no-brainer and with a manager like here, the first time I spoke to him I was taken away by him and his plans. Obviously I’ve played against his side and know how hard it is against Jurgen Klopp’s team. I want to be part of that team and make it hard for teams to break us down and beat us. A team like Liverpool you are not going to turn down. I couldn’t wait to get here once the fee was agreed.” Robertson will have an immediate chance to impress during Liverpool’s German tour due to a thigh injury to James Milner, who will not feature in the three games. Many believe Roberston will initially be Milner’s deputy, but the youngster has loftier ambitions. Left-back has been a problem position for Liverpool Credit: Getty Images “I’ve come here wanting to be first choice,” he said. “Obviously it is up to the manager as the competition will be big for the position, but it’s one where I’m hoping to come out on top. I don’t like it if I’m not part of the starting team. I don’t like sitting on the bench even when it was very rare at Hull to rest during cup games. I’m not a good spectator, I’m a nightmare when I’m injured and I’m not playing. “I respect the other players and I know how good a job they can do but I’ve just got to bring my A-game and hopefully it’s enough for me to first choice.” With rival Premier League clubs paying £50 million for overlapping full-backs, Robertson could become one of this summer’s bargains. He laughs at the thought of a £10 million purchase being seen as such. “I wouldn’t quite say that,” he said. “We know over the last few years that football’s been a bit crazy. The investment all around the world that is making people spend kind of silly money. I think it’s going to keep going up and up. “You don’t focus on the price tag, you just try to focus on when you get there. The players, themselves, can’t control that. If you’re a wee bit more expensive then there’s maybe more pressure on you, but when you come to big clubs like this one, there is always pressure on you.” Andy Robertson is valued at £3.5m in Telegraph Fantasy Football, but is he good enough to make your team? - pick a team now >>

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson: 'I was at the bottom of the game - that drives me on'

Most successful sports people can recall one crossroads in a career, an event that made the difference between turning professional and reciting the “could have been a contender” speech. For Liverpool’s new £10 million left-back Andy Robertson, there is already a catalogue of such defining moments. At 15, Robertson was told by Celtic he was too small and timid to play at the highest level, a crushing disappointment he says inspired him to prove the sceptics wrong. By 18, now working in the corporate department at Hampden Park while playing amateur football for Queen’s Park, Robertson was given a deadline by his supportive but realistic parents; secure a professional contract in the next 12 months or consider alternatives. Whatever challenges face him at Anfield, Robertson is used to playing for the highest stakes. Robertson is on pre-season tour with Liverpool in Germany “For the first few years when I was in the youth side at Queen’s Park it was fine because I was still at school,” says Robertson. “I was grateful to my mum and dad because [after leaving school] they said, ‘We will give you this season to try and push on and make that dream a reality, but after that you might have to look at other options’. I was going down the line of needing to apply for university or college or maybe becoming a PE teacher or something in sports science. Queen’s Park was amateur so you do not get paid. You need to make a living with that. “I worked in Hampden Park taking phone calls and [ticket] orders for games. We trained twice a week at night and played games on Saturday, so I was working 9 to 5 and then having to train. “There was a guy, Andy McGlennan, who had worked at Queen’s Park for years and he was high up at Hampden so sorted a lot of the boys out with jobs. He looked after us and made sure I had some money in my pocket with a bit of hard work. He knew what the dream was and helped me.” Liverpool XI of great Scots Rejection by Celtic, Robertson’s boyhood side who as a fan he watched knock Liverpool out of the 2003 Uefa Cup (his father grew up worshipping Kenny Dalglish), left a scar. “There was a transition going on at Celtic at the time where a new head of youth had come in. I didn’t fit the bill,” said Robertson. “He came from Motherwell, who were full of big lads and were physical. That wasn’t my game. I was small. I’m not big now but it took me time to grow and fill out. “He saw a small guy playing centre-mid, left-mid or left-back who was quite weak. To be fair I was, but I believed in my ability. “That was the first time I had anyone doubt me. Tommy Burns [the former Celtic manager and head of youth development] was great with me and when he died it hit everyone hard. He was different class with me, he liked me as a player, he liked me as a person and he could see what potential I had. “He sadly passed away and Celtic went another route afterwards, one which was hard on some players, but good for others that maybe didn’t fit Tommy’s vision. How much has your Premier League club spent this summer? “Being rejected was quite hard because I was a Celtic fan from birth. It took nearly a full season to get over that disappointment. My first year at Queen’s Park, I just wasn’t good enough, but that tough period shaped me. “I’ve had a few doubters since then, but you’ve just got to continuously prove them wrong because if you are, it means you’re doing things right. Looking back on it now, being released was the best thing that could have happened to me.” So has there been any contact from those at Celtic’s academy who made such an expensive mistake? “I don’t want them being in touch just because of what’s happened now,” he says in the luxurious surrounding of Liverpool’s German training camp in Rottach-Egern. “Would they be in touch if it worked out the other way and I was a PE teacher somewhere? No.” Robertson impressed Jurgen Klopp with his performances as Hull Credit: Getty Images Robertson could not have imagined it was his response to this childhood setback, thriving at Dundee United and Hull City, that caught Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp’s attention as much as his stylish full-back performances. Klopp empathised with what he described as the 23-year-old’s “incredible personal journey”. “The manager wants to know the person as well as he knows the footballer,” said Robertson. “He was asking me about my story. He told me about himself and wanted to know all about me. “I saw the quotes when I signed for Liverpool and he obviously liked my journey from the bottom of Scottish football to where I am now. It has driven me along.” The Anfield interest in Robertson pre-dates Klopp – he was first under consideration two summers ago – but he left an impression on the German coach when shining for Hull last season. Steve Heighway’s most successful Liverpool Academy XI Robertson lived with the rumours of a Liverpool bid for a while, but said he only felt sure of their interest once an offer was made. “It’s hard because there are scouts at every game. They can tell your agent or whoever they are looking at you, but you never really know,” he said. “I’m sure they go there with an open mind and it is about who catches their eye. That’s the nature of football. You don’t take too much attention until there is a formal bid. There was a lot of speculation about it but that’s football. You just need to get your head down, work hard and make it a reality. “When Liverpool come in it’s a no-brainer and with a manager like here, the first time I spoke to him I was taken away by him and his plans. Obviously I’ve played against his side and know how hard it is against Jurgen Klopp’s team. I want to be part of that team and make it hard for teams to break us down and beat us. A team like Liverpool you are not going to turn down. I couldn’t wait to get here once the fee was agreed.” Robertson will have an immediate chance to impress during Liverpool’s German tour due to a thigh injury to James Milner, who will not feature in the three games. Many believe Roberston will initially be Milner’s deputy, but the youngster has loftier ambitions. Left-back has been a problem position for Liverpool Credit: Getty Images “I’ve come here wanting to be first choice,” he said. “Obviously it is up to the manager as the competition will be big for the position, but it’s one where I’m hoping to come out on top. I don’t like it if I’m not part of the starting team. I don’t like sitting on the bench even when it was very rare at Hull to rest during cup games. I’m not a good spectator, I’m a nightmare when I’m injured and I’m not playing. “I respect the other players and I know how good a job they can do but I’ve just got to bring my A-game and hopefully it’s enough for me to first choice.” With rival Premier League clubs paying £50 million for overlapping full-backs, Robertson could become one of this summer’s bargains. He laughs at the thought of a £10 million purchase being seen as such. “I wouldn’t quite say that,” he said. “We know over the last few years that football’s been a bit crazy. The investment all around the world that is making people spend kind of silly money. I think it’s going to keep going up and up. “You don’t focus on the price tag, you just try to focus on when you get there. The players, themselves, can’t control that. If you’re a wee bit more expensive then there’s maybe more pressure on you, but when you come to big clubs like this one, there is always pressure on you.” Andy Robertson is valued at £3.5m in Telegraph Fantasy Football, but is he good enough to make your team? - pick a team now >>

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson: 'I was at the bottom of the game - that drives me on'

Most successful sports people can recall one crossroads in a career, an event that made the difference between turning professional and reciting the “could have been a contender” speech. For Liverpool’s new £10 million left-back Andy Robertson, there is already a catalogue of such defining moments. At 15, Robertson was told by Celtic he was too small and timid to play at the highest level, a crushing disappointment he says inspired him to prove the sceptics wrong. By 18, now working in the corporate department at Hampden Park while playing amateur football for Queen’s Park, Robertson was given a deadline by his supportive but realistic parents; secure a professional contract in the next 12 months or consider alternatives. Whatever challenges face him at Anfield, Robertson is used to playing for the highest stakes. Robertson is on pre-season tour with Liverpool in Germany “For the first few years when I was in the youth side at Queen’s Park it was fine because I was still at school,” says Robertson. “I was grateful to my mum and dad because [after leaving school] they said, ‘We will give you this season to try and push on and make that dream a reality, but after that you might have to look at other options’. I was going down the line of needing to apply for university or college or maybe becoming a PE teacher or something in sports science. Queen’s Park was amateur so you do not get paid. You need to make a living with that. “I worked in Hampden Park taking phone calls and [ticket] orders for games. We trained twice a week at night and played games on Saturday, so I was working 9 to 5 and then having to train. “There was a guy, Andy McGlennan, who had worked at Queen’s Park for years and he was high up at Hampden so sorted a lot of the boys out with jobs. He looked after us and made sure I had some money in my pocket with a bit of hard work. He knew what the dream was and helped me.” Liverpool XI of great Scots Rejection by Celtic, Robertson’s boyhood side who as a fan he watched knock Liverpool out of the 2003 Uefa Cup (his father grew up worshipping Kenny Dalglish), left a scar. “There was a transition going on at Celtic at the time where a new head of youth had come in. I didn’t fit the bill,” said Robertson. “He came from Motherwell, who were full of big lads and were physical. That wasn’t my game. I was small. I’m not big now but it took me time to grow and fill out. “He saw a small guy playing centre-mid, left-mid or left-back who was quite weak. To be fair I was, but I believed in my ability. “That was the first time I had anyone doubt me. Tommy Burns [the former Celtic manager and head of youth development] was great with me and when he died it hit everyone hard. He was different class with me, he liked me as a player, he liked me as a person and he could see what potential I had. “He sadly passed away and Celtic went another route afterwards, one which was hard on some players, but good for others that maybe didn’t fit Tommy’s vision. How much has your Premier League club spent this summer? “Being rejected was quite hard because I was a Celtic fan from birth. It took nearly a full season to get over that disappointment. My first year at Queen’s Park, I just wasn’t good enough, but that tough period shaped me. “I’ve had a few doubters since then, but you’ve just got to continuously prove them wrong because if you are, it means you’re doing things right. Looking back on it now, being released was the best thing that could have happened to me.” So has there been any contact from those at Celtic’s academy who made such an expensive mistake? “I don’t want them being in touch just because of what’s happened now,” he says in the luxurious surrounding of Liverpool’s German training camp in Rottach-Egern. “Would they be in touch if it worked out the other way and I was a PE teacher somewhere? No.” Robertson impressed Jurgen Klopp with his performances as Hull Credit: Getty Images Robertson could not have imagined it was his response to this childhood setback, thriving at Dundee United and Hull City, that caught Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp’s attention as much as his stylish full-back performances. Klopp empathised with what he described as the 23-year-old’s “incredible personal journey”. “The manager wants to know the person as well as he knows the footballer,” said Robertson. “He was asking me about my story. He told me about himself and wanted to know all about me. “I saw the quotes when I signed for Liverpool and he obviously liked my journey from the bottom of Scottish football to where I am now. It has driven me along.” The Anfield interest in Robertson pre-dates Klopp – he was first under consideration two summers ago – but he left an impression on the German coach when shining for Hull last season. Steve Heighway’s most successful Liverpool Academy XI Robertson lived with the rumours of a Liverpool bid for a while, but said he only felt sure of their interest once an offer was made. “It’s hard because there are scouts at every game. They can tell your agent or whoever they are looking at you, but you never really know,” he said. “I’m sure they go there with an open mind and it is about who catches their eye. That’s the nature of football. You don’t take too much attention until there is a formal bid. There was a lot of speculation about it but that’s football. You just need to get your head down, work hard and make it a reality. “When Liverpool come in it’s a no-brainer and with a manager like here, the first time I spoke to him I was taken away by him and his plans. Obviously I’ve played against his side and know how hard it is against Jurgen Klopp’s team. I want to be part of that team and make it hard for teams to break us down and beat us. A team like Liverpool you are not going to turn down. I couldn’t wait to get here once the fee was agreed.” Robertson will have an immediate chance to impress during Liverpool’s German tour due to a thigh injury to James Milner, who will not feature in the three games. Many believe Roberston will initially be Milner’s deputy, but the youngster has loftier ambitions. Left-back has been a problem position for Liverpool Credit: Getty Images “I’ve come here wanting to be first choice,” he said. “Obviously it is up to the manager as the competition will be big for the position, but it’s one where I’m hoping to come out on top. I don’t like it if I’m not part of the starting team. I don’t like sitting on the bench even when it was very rare at Hull to rest during cup games. I’m not a good spectator, I’m a nightmare when I’m injured and I’m not playing. “I respect the other players and I know how good a job they can do but I’ve just got to bring my A-game and hopefully it’s enough for me to first choice.” With rival Premier League clubs paying £50 million for overlapping full-backs, Robertson could become one of this summer’s bargains. He laughs at the thought of a £10 million purchase being seen as such. “I wouldn’t quite say that,” he said. “We know over the last few years that football’s been a bit crazy. The investment all around the world that is making people spend kind of silly money. I think it’s going to keep going up and up. “You don’t focus on the price tag, you just try to focus on when you get there. The players, themselves, can’t control that. If you’re a wee bit more expensive then there’s maybe more pressure on you, but when you come to big clubs like this one, there is always pressure on you.” Andy Robertson is valued at £3.5m in Telegraph Fantasy Football, but is he good enough to make your team? - pick a team now >>

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson: 'I was at the bottom of the game - that drives me on'

Most successful sports people can recall one crossroads in a career, an event that made the difference between turning professional and reciting the “could have been a contender” speech. For Liverpool’s new £10 million left-back Andy Robertson, there is already a catalogue of such defining moments. At 15, Robertson was told by Celtic he was too small and timid to play at the highest level, a crushing disappointment he says inspired him to prove the sceptics wrong. By 18, now working in the corporate department at Hampden Park while playing amateur football for Queen’s Park, Robertson was given a deadline by his supportive but realistic parents; secure a professional contract in the next 12 months or consider alternatives. Whatever challenges face him at Anfield, Robertson is used to playing for the highest stakes. Robertson is on pre-season tour with Liverpool in Germany “For the first few years when I was in the youth side at Queen’s Park it was fine because I was still at school,” says Robertson. “I was grateful to my mum and dad because [after leaving school] they said, ‘We will give you this season to try and push on and make that dream a reality, but after that you might have to look at other options’. I was going down the line of needing to apply for university or college or maybe becoming a PE teacher or something in sports science. Queen’s Park was amateur so you do not get paid. You need to make a living with that. “I worked in Hampden Park taking phone calls and [ticket] orders for games. We trained twice a week at night and played games on Saturday, so I was working 9 to 5 and then having to train. “There was a guy, Andy McGlennan, who had worked at Queen’s Park for years and he was high up at Hampden so sorted a lot of the boys out with jobs. He looked after us and made sure I had some money in my pocket with a bit of hard work. He knew what the dream was and helped me.” Liverpool XI of great Scots Rejection by Celtic, Robertson’s boyhood side who as a fan he watched knock Liverpool out of the 2003 Uefa Cup (his father grew up worshipping Kenny Dalglish), left a scar. “There was a transition going on at Celtic at the time where a new head of youth had come in. I didn’t fit the bill,” said Robertson. “He came from Motherwell, who were full of big lads and were physical. That wasn’t my game. I was small. I’m not big now but it took me time to grow and fill out. “He saw a small guy playing centre-mid, left-mid or left-back who was quite weak. To be fair I was, but I believed in my ability. “That was the first time I had anyone doubt me. Tommy Burns [the former Celtic manager and head of youth development] was great with me and when he died it hit everyone hard. He was different class with me, he liked me as a player, he liked me as a person and he could see what potential I had. “He sadly passed away and Celtic went another route afterwards, one which was hard on some players, but good for others that maybe didn’t fit Tommy’s vision. How much has your Premier League club spent this summer? “Being rejected was quite hard because I was a Celtic fan from birth. It took nearly a full season to get over that disappointment. My first year at Queen’s Park, I just wasn’t good enough, but that tough period shaped me. “I’ve had a few doubters since then, but you’ve just got to continuously prove them wrong because if you are, it means you’re doing things right. Looking back on it now, being released was the best thing that could have happened to me.” So has there been any contact from those at Celtic’s academy who made such an expensive mistake? “I don’t want them being in touch just because of what’s happened now,” he says in the luxurious surrounding of Liverpool’s German training camp in Rottach-Egern. “Would they be in touch if it worked out the other way and I was a PE teacher somewhere? No.” Robertson impressed Jurgen Klopp with his performances as Hull Credit: Getty Images Robertson could not have imagined it was his response to this childhood setback, thriving at Dundee United and Hull City, that caught Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp’s attention as much as his stylish full-back performances. Klopp empathised with what he described as the 23-year-old’s “incredible personal journey”. “The manager wants to know the person as well as he knows the footballer,” said Robertson. “He was asking me about my story. He told me about himself and wanted to know all about me. “I saw the quotes when I signed for Liverpool and he obviously liked my journey from the bottom of Scottish football to where I am now. It has driven me along.” The Anfield interest in Robertson pre-dates Klopp – he was first under consideration two summers ago – but he left an impression on the German coach when shining for Hull last season. Steve Heighway’s most successful Liverpool Academy XI Robertson lived with the rumours of a Liverpool bid for a while, but said he only felt sure of their interest once an offer was made. “It’s hard because there are scouts at every game. They can tell your agent or whoever they are looking at you, but you never really know,” he said. “I’m sure they go there with an open mind and it is about who catches their eye. That’s the nature of football. You don’t take too much attention until there is a formal bid. There was a lot of speculation about it but that’s football. You just need to get your head down, work hard and make it a reality. “When Liverpool come in it’s a no-brainer and with a manager like here, the first time I spoke to him I was taken away by him and his plans. Obviously I’ve played against his side and know how hard it is against Jurgen Klopp’s team. I want to be part of that team and make it hard for teams to break us down and beat us. A team like Liverpool you are not going to turn down. I couldn’t wait to get here once the fee was agreed.” Robertson will have an immediate chance to impress during Liverpool’s German tour due to a thigh injury to James Milner, who will not feature in the three games. Many believe Roberston will initially be Milner’s deputy, but the youngster has loftier ambitions. Left-back has been a problem position for Liverpool Credit: Getty Images “I’ve come here wanting to be first choice,” he said. “Obviously it is up to the manager as the competition will be big for the position, but it’s one where I’m hoping to come out on top. I don’t like it if I’m not part of the starting team. I don’t like sitting on the bench even when it was very rare at Hull to rest during cup games. I’m not a good spectator, I’m a nightmare when I’m injured and I’m not playing. “I respect the other players and I know how good a job they can do but I’ve just got to bring my A-game and hopefully it’s enough for me to first choice.” With rival Premier League clubs paying £50 million for overlapping full-backs, Robertson could become one of this summer’s bargains. He laughs at the thought of a £10 million purchase being seen as such. “I wouldn’t quite say that,” he said. “We know over the last few years that football’s been a bit crazy. The investment all around the world that is making people spend kind of silly money. I think it’s going to keep going up and up. “You don’t focus on the price tag, you just try to focus on when you get there. The players, themselves, can’t control that. If you’re a wee bit more expensive then there’s maybe more pressure on you, but when you come to big clubs like this one, there is always pressure on you.” Andy Robertson is valued at £3.5m in Telegraph Fantasy Football, but is he good enough to make your team? - pick a team now >>

Liverpool have completed the signing of Scotland left-back Andy Robertson from Hull. Robertson spent three seasons with the Tigers following his arrival from Dundee United, and joins the Reds on a long-term contract. The fee is undisclosed but is thought to be worth around £8million to the Sky Bet Championship club. Robertson, who will wear the number 26 at Anfield, has won 15 caps for his country and scored his only international goal in a 3-1 friendly defeat by Roy Hodgson's England in 2014. He joins Mohamed Salah and Dominic Solanke as summer additions to Jurgen Klopp's squad. Robertson joins Solanke, pictured, and Mo Salah as new summer signings Credit: Action Plus Left-back has long been an area of concern for the Reds and former England midfielder James Milner spent much of the season in the position after Alberto Moreno failed to convince. Burnley made the early running for Robertson after Hull's relegation from the Premier League but no deal was forthcoming, opening the door for Klopp. The 23-year-old told Liverpoolfc.com: "It feels a wee bit surreal just now. Obviously I'm delighted. There's been a lot of speculation over the last couple of weeks but I'm glad that the deal's finally been done and I'm a Liverpool player. "My family are proud of what I've achieved so far and they're all over the moon with the move, as well as me of course. We're all just looking forward to being part of the Liverpool family now. "There's not many, if any, more special clubs than Liverpool. When you grow up as a kid you dream of playing with big clubs such as Liverpool and to make that a reality is a dream come true for me. Premier League done deals: each club's confirmed summer transfers "I just want to prove to people that I can do it at this level, and hopefully I manage to do that this season and go on to do good things for this club." Announcing his departure, Hull said: "The 23-year-old full-back left the Tigers' Portuguese training camp earlier this week to undergo a medical and finalise terms with the Merseyside club. "Robertson arrived at the KCOM Stadium from Dundee United in July 2014 and went on to make 116 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring five goals. "Everybody at the club would like to thank Andy for his efforts in a black and amber shirt, and wish him well for the future." Midfielder Kevin Stewart has moved in the opposite direction on a three-year deal. The former Tottenham player made 20 appearances for Liverpool, including 11 in the Premier League, and has played for Crewe, Cheltenham, Burton and Swindon on loan. Having flown to Portugal for his medical, Stewart could make his first Hull appearance in Saturday's friendly against Benfica. Stewart told www.hullcitytigers.com: "I'm delighted to sign for the club, I can't wait to get started and get my boots on. "It's an exciting move for me and I'm looking forward to the challenge ahead."

Liverpool have completed the signing of Scotland left-back Andy Robertson from Hull. Robertson spent three seasons with the Tigers following his arrival from Dundee United, and joins the Reds on a long-term contract. The fee is undisclosed but is thought to be worth around £8million to the Sky Bet Championship club. Robertson, who will wear the number 26 at Anfield, has won 15 caps for his country and scored his only international goal in a 3-1 friendly defeat by Roy Hodgson's England in 2014. He joins Mohamed Salah and Dominic Solanke as summer additions to Jurgen Klopp's squad. Robertson joins Solanke, pictured, and Mo Salah as new summer signings Credit: Action Plus Left-back has long been an area of concern for the Reds and former England midfielder James Milner spent much of the season in the position after Alberto Moreno failed to convince. Burnley made the early running for Robertson after Hull's relegation from the Premier League but no deal was forthcoming, opening the door for Klopp. The 23-year-old told Liverpoolfc.com: "It feels a wee bit surreal just now. Obviously I'm delighted. There's been a lot of speculation over the last couple of weeks but I'm glad that the deal's finally been done and I'm a Liverpool player. "My family are proud of what I've achieved so far and they're all over the moon with the move, as well as me of course. We're all just looking forward to being part of the Liverpool family now. "There's not many, if any, more special clubs than Liverpool. When you grow up as a kid you dream of playing with big clubs such as Liverpool and to make that a reality is a dream come true for me. Premier League done deals: each club's confirmed summer transfers "I just want to prove to people that I can do it at this level, and hopefully I manage to do that this season and go on to do good things for this club." Announcing his departure, Hull said: "The 23-year-old full-back left the Tigers' Portuguese training camp earlier this week to undergo a medical and finalise terms with the Merseyside club. "Robertson arrived at the KCOM Stadium from Dundee United in July 2014 and went on to make 116 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring five goals. "Everybody at the club would like to thank Andy for his efforts in a black and amber shirt, and wish him well for the future." Midfielder Kevin Stewart has moved in the opposite direction on a three-year deal. The former Tottenham player made 20 appearances for Liverpool, including 11 in the Premier League, and has played for Crewe, Cheltenham, Burton and Swindon on loan. Having flown to Portugal for his medical, Stewart could make his first Hull appearance in Saturday's friendly against Benfica. Stewart told www.hullcitytigers.com: "I'm delighted to sign for the club, I can't wait to get started and get my boots on. "It's an exciting move for me and I'm looking forward to the challenge ahead."

​Ex-Manchester City youth player Willo Flood has revealed the shocking burglary he was subjected to during his time at the club. The Dundee United footballer, now in his fourth spell with the Scottish club, told ​BBC Sport about the time he was robbed at knifepoint by none other than a Manchester City supporter. Then only 19 years old, Flood recalled the remarkable sequence of events that led the Citizen fan to even chatting to him about the Manchester-based side while he stole the player's...

​Ex-Manchester City youth player Willo Flood has revealed the shocking burglary he was subjected to during his time at the club. The Dundee United footballer, now in his fourth spell with the Scottish club, told ​BBC Sport about the time he was robbed at knifepoint by none other than a Manchester City supporter. Then only 19 years old, Flood recalled the remarkable sequence of events that led the Citizen fan to even chatting to him about the Manchester-based side while he stole the player's...

​Ex-Manchester City youth player Willo Flood has revealed the shocking burglary he was subjected to during his time at the club. The Dundee United footballer, now in his fourth spell with the Scottish club, told ​BBC Sport about the time he was robbed at knifepoint by none other than a Manchester City supporter. Then only 19 years old, Flood recalled the remarkable sequence of events that led the Citizen fan to even chatting to him about the Manchester-based side while he stole the player's...

Le Buzz - VIDEO: Dundee United fan with one leg wins SPFL Goal of the Month